§rom f#e feifirarg of (professor ^amuef (tttiffer in (Utemorg of 3u&3C ^amuef (JUifPer Q0recftinribge $resenfeo fig ^amuef (UtifPer Qj5recftinr%e feong to tfyt feifirarg of (prtnceton £#eofo£tcaf ^emtnarj 7%& .^\4 . »c c <$ 3-.iv^ /#/* - KEY OLD TESTAMENT APOCRYPHA: AN ACCOUNT OF THEIR SEVERAL BOOKS, CONTEXTS AND AUTHORS, AND OF THE TIMES IN WHICH THEY WERE RESPECTIVELY WRITTEN. BY THE/REV. ROBERT GRAY, D. D. PREBENDARY OF DURHAM. THE FIFTH EDITION,- 3LonUon ; PRINTED FOR F. C. AND J. RIVINGTONj no. 62, st. Paul's church-yard. 1805. fRIMTkfi BY BYE AND LAW, ST. JOHN'e-S(^U ARE, CLERKKNWtLU TO THE REV. JOSEPH HOLDEN POTT, A.M. PREBENDARY OF LINCOLN, AND ARCHDEACON OF ST. ALBANS. — -■B»©©®-i(ssi-®a©9«=— Dear Sir, THE happinefs I enjoy from that friend- fliip with which you have long ho- noured me, and the reverence I entertain for the various excellencies of your charac- ter, excite me. to profit, by every occafion of expreffing towards you my fentiments of fin- cere acknowledgment, and lively regard. At the fiift appearance of the following work, I did not think myfelf authorifed to indulge my withes in dedicating it to }'Ou ; becauie it had not been previoufly fubmitted to your examination. Aware of that jure veneration for the facred volume, which you derive from an intimate acquaintance with its contents, I knew with what concern you A 2 would ( iv ) would find your name employed to fanction an account of the infpired writings, if that account fhould prove unworthy of your countenance. Since, however, the work has experienced a favourable reception, and you yourfelf have ftamped a value on it, by your approbation ; I do not hefitate, though full without your permiffion, to infcribe to you the firft fruits of my application to thole ftudies which you have afficluouily encou- raged me to purfue. I could not, I truft, offer }7ou a more welcome tribute, than a proof of m \r admiration of thofe Holy Scrip- tures, of which, by your judicious and ele- gant remarks, you have often pointed out the perfections, and of which you conftantly illuitrate the beneficial influence, by the diftinguiihed example of your converfation and life. I beg at the fame time to remain, with fincere and affe6tionate refpecr, DEAR SIR, 10 Cn MOST FAITHFUL, AND OBEDIENT SERVANT, ROBERT GRAY. ( v ) PREFACE. »*<5* (*)*•«?• (Jxl)1!1®* rpHE ufcful Key to the New Teltament JL publiihed by Doctor Percy, Bifhop of Dromore, firft fuggefted the idea of the prefent work. It was apprehended that a iimilar affiitant to the perufal of the Books of the Old Teltament, would prove equally convenient to thofe who have neither leifure nor opportunities to confult larger publica- tions, for fcattered information. A differ- ence in the character of the books here treated of, has compelled the Editor to adopt a more diffirfive and difcuriive method of conducting his fubject than that which is followed by the learned Bifhop. The un- certainty of the dates and authors of fome books, the objections to opinions generally fiftablifhed, and the mixed character, and A 3 mi feel* VI PREFACE. mifcellaneous contents of the works confi- dered, have neceffarily occaiioned compli- cated and extended difcufhons. The Editor was defirous of exhibiting in one point of view, the probable period of each book, the character and deiign of its author, and the proofs of, or objections to its infpiration. He wifhed to prefent the reader with a general idea of the refpeclive importance of each, of its intrinhc preten-? fions, and external fanctions, and to furnifh, in a compendious defcription, whatever might contribute to illuftrate its hiftory and contents. This the Editor has done in a manner as concife as poffible, confidering it confident with his plan to prefix general in- formation and remarks as introductory, and feparately to examine fuch queftions as were immediately connected with the fcope of the individual book. He judged it improper to deliver opinions without itating the rea- fons on which they were founded, or to adopt decifions on difputed or doubtful points, without producing, at leaft, the mofl im- portant objections that might be urged againft them, left the Reader mould be led to decide on partial grounds. Since PREFACE. Vii Since the books often contain paffages of o.bfcure interpretation, and doubtful im- port, as likewife dates, names, and other particulars, upon the explanation of which their character for antiquity and authority mull, in fome meafure reft, it was impoilible ibmetimes to avoid critical and chronolo- gical queftions. In confequence of thefe, the notes have been increafed in number and extent, be}Tqnd what was at firft in- tended. The Reader will, however, hereby be faved the trouble of referring to com- mentators ; or, if unwilling to acquieice in the decifion adopted, he may readily find the foundation and authorities on ivhich it was eftablifhed. As the infpiration of the canonical books was to be proved, it was often requifite to point out the aecompliihment of prophecy, which, therefore, the Editor has done, in the moft iignal inltances, though commonly by reference only and curfory obfervation. He prefumes, however, that he has thereby often unfolded an intereiting fcene, or opened a fruitful fource of initructive en- quiry. The importance, likewife, of fome difcoveries and remarks which learned com- 3 mentaries Vlll PREFACE. mentaries have furhilhed, has fometimes tempted the Editor to introduce particulars that may be thought too minute for a f Kings _ 1S7 Of the first Book OF Chronicles 192 Ofthe second Book OF Chronicles 19S Of Ezra 203 Ne HF.M I AH - 213 Esther _ 22Z Job - 229 Psalms - 258 Proverbs - 278 Ecclesiastes _ 2QO Daniel - - 403 IXTRO INTRODUCTION. THE Bible, which in its original import im- plies only the book [a], is a word appropri- ated by way of eminence, to that collection of Scrip- tures, which have at different times been compofed by perfons divinely infpired. It contains the feveral revelations delivered from God to mankind for their instruction. Thofe communicated before the birth of (Thrift, are included under that divifion of the Bible, which is diftinguimed by the title of the Old Teftament [b], and of that divifion only it is here meant to treat. The Old Teftament comprehends all thofe facred books which were written by the defcendants of Ifrael, a people felected by God for important purpofes, to " be a Kingdom of Priefts, and an Holy Nation [c]." Among this people fuc- ceffive prophets and infpired writers were appointed [a] Bt£*»c» vel @&Mct, Liber, from &£?.o?, an Egyptian reed, of the Ikin of which paper was made. Chryfoft. Vol. x. p. 349. and Heum. de Origin. Nom. Bib. The Bible is by the Jews called Mikra, Lefture : thus the Koran means the reading. [b] Teftament fignifies covenant, agreeably to the import of the Hebrew word Berith. Hieron. in Malach. cap. ii. [c] Exod. xix. 6. xxxiii. 16. Levit. xx. 24, 26. Pfalm cxlvii, 19. Rom. iii. 2, ix. 4. B bv % INTRODUCTION. by God to convey iuch prophecies and inftructions as were inftru mental to the defigns of his providence. As thefe fcriptures were produced, they Mere ad- mitted into the facred volume, which by gradual accumulation, at lengih increafed to its preient fizc. Thefe being delivered to the Hebrews, in their own language [d], with every mark that could charac- terize divine revelations, were received with reve- rence, and preferved with the moft anxious care, and attention. Such only were accepted, as pro- ceeded from perfons unqueftionably invefted with the prophetic character [e], or evidently authorized by a divine commiffion, who acted under the iianctioit of public appointment, and miraculous fupport. The books which contained the precepts of the prophets, contained alio the proofs of their infpiration, and the teftimonies of their character. By recording contemporary events they appealed to well-known evidence of their authority, their impartiality, and their adherence to truth, and every lucceeding pro- phet confirmed the character of his predecellbr, by relating the aceompliihment of prophecy in the hif- tory of his own period, or bore teftimony to his pre- tentions, by repeating and explaining his predictions. To the writings of thefe infpired perfons, other productions were afterwards annexed, on account of [n] The Hebrew language, if not the firft language of man, teems at leaft to have higher pretenfions to antiquity than any other. The books of the Old Teftament, jire the only writings now extant in pure Hebrew. [f.J Jofeph. cont. Apion. Lib. I. their TM nODUCflON'. 3 their valuable contents, and inftruclive tendency, though their claims to inspiration have been juitly rejected. Such only as were undeniably dictated by the l'pirit of God, were confidered by the Jews as canonical [f], and i'uch only are received by us as a rule of faith and doctrine. The contents of the firft diviiion of the Bible are therefore diftinguifhed into two dalles. The firft containing the books of ac- knowledged infpiration ; the fecond comprifing thole which are intitled Apocryphal, as being of dubious, or fufpected character, and authority. The latter will be fpoken of in a proper place, as in the prefent preliminary difiertation, it is purpofed to treat of fuch only as are canonical, to trace a fhort fketch of their hiftory in a general way ; a particular .ac- count of each individual book being referved for a feparate chapter. Though the books of the Old Teltament are not always chronologically arranged according to the order in which thev were written, vet the Pentateuch was probably the firft of thofe productions which are contained in the infpired volume. These five books written by the hand of Alofes, and consequently free from error, were fecured as a facred depofit in the tabernacle, where the ark of the covenant was placed [g] ; and were kept there, as well during the journey through the wildernefs, as [f] The word Canon is derived from uwt, which may be interpreted, a rule or catalogue. Athan. Vol. x. p. 228, Hkron. % ol. x. p. 41. It here means a rale of do&rine* [«] Deut. xxxi. 26. B2 for 4 INTRODUCTION'. for fame time after at Jeruialem. To the fame fanc- tuary were configned, as they were fucceffively pro- duced, all thole hiftorical [h], and prophetical books which were written from the time of Jofhua, to that of David, including their own works; during which period a feries of prophets flouriihed in regular fuc- ceffion. Solomon having afterwards ere&ed a tem- ple to the honour of God [i], appointed that in fu- ture the facred books ihould be depofited in this holy receptacle, and enriched the collection by the in- fpired productions of his own pen. After him a fucceffion of illuftrious prophets continued to de- nounce vengeance againft the difobedience of the Hebrew nation, and to predict the calamities which that difobedience muft inevitably produce. Jonah, Amos, Ifaiah, Hofea, Joel, Micah, Nahum, Zepha- niah, Jeremiah, Habakkuk, and Obadiah fuccef- fively flouriihed before the deftruftion of the temple, and contributed by their unerring predictions, to demonftrate the attributes and defigns of providence, and to enlarge the volume of infpired wifdom by invaluable additions. About 420 [k] years after its foundation, the temple being rifled and burnt by Nebuchadnezzar, [h] The books do not ftand in the order in which they were written : they were perhaps not arranged at firft according to dates, or they might have been accidentally tranfpofed in the manufcript rolls : in different verfions, they are differently placed. Dupin Differt. Prel. Lib. I. ch. i. feft. 7. [1] The Temple was dedicated about A. M. 3000. [k] Jofephus fays 470, others 428. Ulher 424 years. It was deftroyed about 586 years before Chrift. 8 the INTRODUCTION. 5 the original manufcripts of the law tind of the pro- phetical writings mult have been removed; and were pofifibly carried to Babylon, except indeed we fup- pofe, that the part of the Hebrew nation which re- mained at Jerufalem, obtained permiffion, or found means to retain them [l]. Thofe Hebrews who were difperfed in the captivity, probably ufed fuch copies as had been previoufly diftributed ; though Daniel who refers to the law [m], might by his intereft with the Babylonifh kings, have procured accefs to the original, if we iuppoie it to have been transferred to Babylon. Within the feventy years during which the Jews were detained in captivity, were compoled the affecting lamentations of Jeremiah, the confola- tory prophecies of Ezekiel, and the hiftory and pro- phecies of Daniel. On the acceffion of Cyrus to the throne of Perfia, the Jews being releaied from their captivity, returned to Jerufalem about A. M. 3468, having doubtlefs procured or recovered the original books of the law and of the prophets, with a defign to place them in the temple, which after much op- pofition from the Samaritans, they rebuilt in about twenty years, being encouraged to perievere in this pious work, by the exhortations of Haggai and Zechariah ; they alfo reftored the divine worihip according to the law. About fifty years after the temple was rebuilt, Ezra, who fince the return from [l] In the account of the things carxied to Babylon, no mention is made of the facrcd books. 2 Kings xxv, 2 Chronicles xxxvi. Jerem. Hii. [m] Dan. ix. 11, 13. B 3 Babylon, 6 INTRODUCTION, Babylon, had been engaged in reftoring the Jewifti church, is related by tradition to have made, in conjunction with the great fynagogue, a collection of the faered writings [n] ; and being affifted by the Holy Spirit, he was enabled to discriminate what was authentic and divine, and to reject fuch parts as refted but on falfe pretenfions ; this collection was therefore free from error, and refcued from all accidental corruptions. It has been maintained, indeed, that as a long refidence in Chaldea, during which the Jews were difperfed and Separated from each other, had fo far precluded the ufe of the Hebrew letters, that they were almoft forgotten and fuperfecled by thofe of Chaldea, Ezra, partly in compliance with cuftom, and partly to differ from the Samaritans, which obnoxious feet employed the old Hebrew letters, fubftituted the Chaldean or fquare letters, which we now call the Hebrew, for thofe which prevailed previoufly to the captivity [o], as [n] Nehem. viii. I, 3, 9. Jofeph. Lib. I. Cont, Apion, Tract. Megil. in Gemar, cap. iii. Hieron. cont. Helv. cap, 1. Hilar. Prolog, in Pfalni ; Auguft. de Mirac. Sac. Scrip. Lib. II. Ifidor. Orig. Lib. VI. cap, I. Geneb. Chron. p. clxxviii. and ecli. & ad A. M. 3640, Jans, ad Cap. 48. Eccles. Buxtorf, Tiberiad, Cap. xi. Com. in Mafor. Theo- dor. Prsef. in Pfalm ; Prid. Conned. Part I. Book v, Dupin Piff. Prel. [o] Some affert alfo, that Ezra introduced the points or characters which ferve to mark the Hebrew vowels ; others maintain, that thefe are as ancient as the language ; and a thirds clafs, that they were invented by the doctors of the fchool of Tiberias, INTRODUCTION. 7 as we changed our old black letter for the Rgmaii characters. There have, indeed, been ibme difputes on this iubject, but this opinion teems to be belt iupported fp]. To this genuine collection of Ezra, were after- wards annexed his own facred writings, as well as thole of Nehemiah, and of Malachi. Thefe were probably inierted into the canon by Simon the Jult, who is related to have been the laft of the great iynagogue [qJ, and by this addition was completed the canon of the Old Teftament, for from Malachi, no prophet aroie till the time of John the Baptiit, who, as it were, connected the two covenants, and Tiberias, generally called the Maforires, about 500 years after Chrilt, or as fome fay later. The Maforites feem to have been a fucceffion of critics, profeffing a traditionary fcience of reading the fcripture, as the Cabalifts did of interpreting it. [p] This account is founded on a Jewifh tradition generally received, and is related on the teftimonies of Eufebius and St. Jerom, but thofe who maintain that the fquare were the ancient Hebrew letters, have attempted to invalidate thefe au- thorities. The canon, however, was certainly compofed about the time of Ezra, if not by himfelf. Vid. Eufeb. Chron. ad A. M. 4740. Hieron. Pra?f. ad 2 Reg. Com. in Ezekiel, in Prol. Gal. & Sixt. Senens. Lib. II. Biblioth. Sanft. Morin. Cong. Orat. Alfo Scaliger, Bochart, Cafaubon, Voffius, Grotius, Walton, and Capellus. [o] The great fynagogue is a term applied by the Jews to a fucceffion of Elders, fuppofed to have amounted to one hun- dred and twenty, who had the government of the Jewifh church after the captivity. They are faid to have fuperin- tended and clofed the canon of the fcriptures. Vid. Prid. Con. An. 292. B4 of $ INTRODUCTION". of whom Malachi prophefied, that he Ihould pre- cede the great day of the Lord [r]. This canon of the Old Teftament was by the Jews computed to contain twenty-two books [s], a number analogous to that of the letters of the He- brew alphabet, and correfponding with the catalogue of thole which are received by our Church as cano- nical. With the Jews, however, Judges and Ruth were reckoned but as one book ; as like wife the two books of Samuel, thofe of Kings and of Chronicles were refpectively united into fingle books ; Ezra and Nehemiah were alio joined together, as the pro- phecies and lamentation of Jeremiah were taken un- der one head ; fo that if we confider the twelve mi- ner prophets as they were comprehended in the Jew- ifh canon, as one book, the number of the books will be exactly twenty-two. If the Prophets wrote any other books, they are now loft, but as no more were admitted into the canon, we have reafon to fup- pofe, that no more were infpired, though many other books are mentioned and referred to in the fcrip- tures, which having no pretentions to infpiration, were never received into the lacred lift [t], Thefe twenty- [r] Malach. iv. 5;. [sj Jofcph. cont. Apion, Lib. I. Hieron. Prol. Galeat. Sixt. Senens, Lib. I. c. ii. Epiphan. &e, [t] Orig, Horn. I. in Cant. Auguft. De Civic Dei, Lib. XVIII. cap. xxxviii. Qusft. 42. in Numb. It has been faid, likewife, that fome paflages are cited by the Evangelifts, as from the prophetic writings, which are not extant in them, as in Matt. ii. 25, but St. Matthew might here allude to Judges xiii. INTRODUCTION. $ tweniy-two books have an unqueftionable title to be coniidered as the genuine and infpired productions of thofe authors, to whom they are feverally affigned. They contain prophecies, and every other intrinfic proof of their divine origin; they were received as authentic by the Hebrews, and pronounced to be infpired oracles by the Evangelical writers, who cite them without any intimation of defect or corruption. They were likewife confidered as exclufively cano- nical in the Chriftian Church, during the four fir it centuries, after which, fome provincial councils attempted to increale the number by fome apocry- phal books, which however, they annexed only as of fecondary authority, till the council of Trent pronounced them to be equally infallible in doc- trine and truth [u]. The Jews divided the facred books into three claifes [x]. The firft, which they called the law, contained, as was before obferved, the live books of IVlofes. The fecond originally included thirteen xiii. 5. or to Ifaiah xi. 1. where according to St. Jerom, '.* A branch fiiaC go out of his root" might be tranflated, f* a Naza- rite (hall grow from his root," or he might refer to the prophetic accounts in general, which had foretold, that Chrift mould be confeerated to God, as all the Nazarites were. The Evangelifts ufually cite more according to the fenfe, than to the words, and they fometimes perhaps allude to well known traditional prophe- cies, to '*■ that which was fpoken by the prophets." See other jnftances in Ephef, v. 14. 2 Tim. iii. 8. James iv. 5. Jude 14, 1 5. which refer to paflages now extant, or to traditional relations. Hieron. de Opt. Gen. Interpr. Vol. I. p. 122. [u] Preface to the Apocryphal books. [xj Prolog, to Ecclu$. Philo de Vita Contemp. p. 691. books, 10 INTRODUCTION. books, which they confidered as the works of tU$ prophets. The third comprifed four books, called by the Jews, Chetubim, and by the Greeks, Hagio- grapha; thefe are conceived to have been the Pialms,. and the three books of Solomon [y]. The fcrip- tuies were fo divided in the time of Jofephus [z], probably without any refpect to fuperiority of infpi- ration, but for diftinclion, and commodious arrange- ment From the time of St Jerom, the fecond clais has been deprived -of fome books [a], which have been thrown into the third clais, and the He- brew doctors have invented many fanciful refine- ments, concerning the nature and degrees of infpi- ration, which are to be afcribed to the books of each clafs refpeclively. They affign an higher authority to the books of the two firit diviiions, though they attribute alio the writings included in the third clafs> to the fuggeftion of the facred Spirit [b]. It would be idle to trouble the reader with the difcufhon of thefe, and fuch like rabbinical conceits, and it may be fumcient here to remark upon this fubjecl, that though the fcripture mentions different modes, by which God communicated his inftructions to the prophets, and particularly attributes a fuperior de- fy] Sixt. Senen. Bib. Sac. cap. vi. p. 313. and Vitrin. Ob. fervat. Sac. Lib. VI. cap. vi. p. 313. [z] Jofeph. cont. Apion, Lib. I. [a] Job, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, Either, 2 Books of Chronicles. [b] Maimon. Mor. Nevoch. p. 2. ch. xxiv. and Smith oa Prophecy, alio Mifn. Jud. c. iii. n. 5. Bava Bathra, cap. i. gree INTRODUCTION. II gree of eminence to Mofes, yet that thefe differences, ftfcd this dittinelion, however they may afteft the dignity of the miniiter employed, cannot be fuppofed to increafe, or to leflen the certainty of the things re- vealed. Whatever God condefcended to communi- cate to mankind by his lcrvants, mult be equally in- fallible and true [c], whether derived from imme- diate converie with him, from an external voice, or from dreams or vilions, or laftly from the internal and enlightening influence of the Holy Spirit. The niode of communication, where the agency of Pro- vidence is eftablilhed, can in no refpett exalt, or de- preciate the intrinsic character of ihe thing revealed. Other divilions, befides that already mentioned, were afterwards adopted, and the order of the books was fometimes changed, as defiini or accident might produce a tranfpofition, but no addition or diminu- tion whatever was permitted to be made among the Jews [dJ ; " never any man, fays Joiephus, hath dared to add to, or to diminifh from, or to alter ought in them [e] ; though other books were writ- ten, which deferved not the fame credit, becaufe there was no certain fucceffion of prophets, from the time of Artaxerxes, and it was a maxim, ingrafted into the Jews in their youth, to efteem thefe writings [c] 2 Tim. iii. 16. 2 Pet. 1. 19, 21. [d] Hieron. praef. in Lib. Reg. Bava Bathra, cap. i. Maimon. in Tad. Chan. p. 2. f. 95, and R. Gedalias in Schalfch hakkab. f, 67. [e] Dcut. iv. 2. and Jr.feph. cont. Apion. Lib. I. Eufcb. Hift. Eccief. Lib. III. cap. ix x. Prasp. Evangel. Lib. Villi 12 INTRODUCTION. as the oracles of God, and remaining conftant in their veneration, willingly to die for them, if necef- fary." Thus were they configned to the reverent acceptance of pofterity, and confecrated by the ap- probation, and teftimony of Chrift himfelf, who ftamped as authentic, and as infallibly to be accom- plished, the law of Mofes, the prophets, and the pfalms [f] ; (the pfalms, comprehending* under that title, the Hagiographa) [g] ; the apoftles like- wife confirmed the fame [h]. Besides the great temple at Jerufalem, many fy- nagogues were founded after the return from the captivity, and furnifhed by the induftry of the rulers of the church, with copies of this authentic collec- tion of the fcriptures, fo that though Antiochus Epiphanes in the perfecution, which he carried oh againft the religion of the Jews, tore in pieces, and afterwards burnt the facred original of Ezra, and luch copies as he could procure [i] ; ftill, as faith- ful copies exifted in all parts, the malevolence of his intention was baffled by God's providence, and Ju- das Maccabaeus, when he had recovered the city, [f] Matt. v. 17, 18, 39. xxi. 42. xxii. 29. xxvi. 54. Luke xvi. 16. xxiv. 27, 44.. John i. 45; v. .59. [g] Philo de Vit. Contemp. Lib. VI. Jofcph. contra Apion. Lib. I. Hieron. in Prolog, in praef. in Dan. Epiphan. Homil. xxix. cap. 7. [h] A&s iii. 18. xviii. 28. xxiv. 14. xxvi. 22, 27. xxviii. 23. xxix. 7. Rom. iii. 2. xv. 4. Heb. i. 1. 2 Tim. iii. 16. 1 Pet. ii. 6. 2 Peter i. 19. Atts viii. 32. Rom. iv. 3. ix. 17. x. 4. [ij 1 Mace. i. 57. Jofcph, Antiq. Lib. XII. cap.7. Sulpir. Set. Hilt. Sac. Lib. II. and INTRODUCTION. 13 and purified the temple, procured for it a perfect and entire collection of the fcriptures, or perhaps depofit- ed therein, that, which had belonged to his father Mattathias [k], and doubtlefs fupplied fuch fyna- gogues with freih copies, as had been plundered during the perfecution. Many of thefe, however, muft have perifhed with the fynagogues that were deftroyed by the armies of Titus, and Vefpafian, though the religious veneration of the Jews for their fcriptures, refcued every copy that could be laved from the general deftruction which overwhelmed their country, as the fcriptures furniftied them con- fiderable confolation in all their afflictions. Joiephus . himfelf, Ave are informed, obtained a copy from Ti- tus [l], when the other Jewiih books were de- ftroyed, and the authentic volume, which till this final demolition had been deposited in the temple, was carried in triumph to Rome, and placed with the purple veils in the temple of Peace [m], fo that, henceforth, no copy of the Hebrew fcriptures was preferved from injury by the vigilance of public guardians, except thole which were kept in the fcat- tered fynagogues of foreign and difpeiied Jews [n], [k] i Mac. ii. 48. iii. 48, xii. 9. 2 Mac. ii. 14. viii. 25. xv. 9. [l] Vide his own Life. [m] Be Bell. Jud. cap. v. [n] The Jewiih fynagogues in all countries were ncmerou; : wherever the apo*iiO caari, " as a lion" my hands •and my feet, can hardly be conceived to have been intention- aiiy 16 INTRODUCTION; Saviour's pretentions [r] ; indeed fuch a deiign muft then have been fruitlefs, fince it could not begeneral, and it mult have been liable to immediate detection; for as chriftianity was built on the foundation of the Old Teftament, and appealed to the Hebrew fcrip- tures for its fupport, wherever the gofpel was re- ceived, the law and the prophets were called into notice and elteem, and preferved with as much care and vigilance as prevailed among the Jews ; and when the chriftian converts were commanded under the Dioclefian persecution, to iurrender them, they Itigmatized fuch as complied with the requifition, as betrayers [q] . Copies then muft have multiplied by increafmg veneration, and however trivial inac- curacies might proportionably prevail, contrived al- teration muft have become more impracticable. Thus every circumftance feems to have confpired to pre- ierve the integrity of the fcriptures free from a fuf- picion of intended corruption, or of change in any efiential point. The jealous care with which they were preferved in the tabernacle, and in the temple, being not more calculated to fecure their integrity, than that reverence which afterwards difplayed itfelf in the difperfed fynagogues, and in the churches con- fecrated to the chriftian faith ; and hence we find in the fcriptures only fuch corruptions as might have ally altered to nonfenfe, nor is it probable that two verfes fhould iiave been defignedly omitted from ch. xv. of Jofhua, merely be- caufe they defcribe, as in the Septuaginr, that Bethlehem was in the territory of Judah, a circumftance othexwife well known. [m. x. i3. from Pfalm xix. 4. Rom. xv. i2. from Ifaiah xi. 10. In the time of Chrift, the original and the translation agreed more exacliy than they now do, as many corruptions muft have been fublequmt to that period* C3 ' i't 22 INTRODUCTION. that period then it was unqueftionably an authentic copy of the infpired books, or it would not have received the ianction of our Saviour, and of his apoftles; and though iince that time it has been re- jected by the Jews on account of the eitimation in which it Mas held by the Chriftians, yet was it for the two rlrft centuries excluiively uied, and has ever fmce been held in great veneration by the Chriftian church, as a very faithful, though not a literal verfion. Thus does the general coincidence between the Hebrew copies, the Samaritan Pentateuch, and the Septuagint verfion of theOldTeftament, demonstrate the unaltered integrity of the lcriptures in important points, as we now pofTeis them, and this integrity is it is therefore in fome degree uncertain, whether the citations are made from the Hebrew, or from the Septuagint, though they appear indeed, to be made chiefly from the latter, except perhaps by St. Matthew, who probably writing in Hebrew, might cite from the Hebrew. Vid. Hieron. adv. RufTin. Mede's Works, p. 7S5. Dr. Brett imagines that our Saviour read, out of a Targum when he read the leflbn in the fyna- gogue. Vid. Luke iv. iS. comp. with Ifaiah lxi. 1. and that he cited a paraphrafe on the crofs. Vid. Matt, xxvii. 46. for Sabacthani is found only in the Chaldaic tongue, and in the Hebrew it is Mniw yazabtani. Chrift and the Apoftles probably cited what was moft known to the Jews, the fenfe being the fame, whether from Original, Verfion, or Paraphrafe. The language fpoken by the Jews in our Saviour's time was the Hebrew mixed with the Chaldaic, and Syriac, which dialects compofe likewife the bafis of the modern Hebrew; Greek how- ever was generally underftood. Vid. Brett's Differt. on the ancient verfion of the Bibtej Blair's Lectures, &c. frill INTRODUCTION*. 23 full farther confirmed by the conformity which fubfifts between thole various tranflations of the Bible into different languages, which have been performed fince the time of our Saviour [e]. It appears therefore that from the time of their firft infpiration, to the prefent day, the facred writings have been difperfed into fo many different hands, that no poilible opportunity could be furniihed for confederate corruption, and every deiigned alteration mult immediately have been detected. The firft Hebrew Bibles were publilhed towards the conclulion of the fifteenth century, by the Jews of Italy [f]. Marry were afterwards pub- lilhed ■ [e] The general integrity of the text is likewife confirmed by the evidence of the Chaldee paraphrafes, which art called targums or verfions ; thefe were tranflations of the Old Tefta- ment from the Hebrew into Chaldee, for the benefit of thofe who had forgotten the Hebrew after the captivity ; vid. Nehem. viii. 8. The two moft ancient, and authentic, are that of Onkelos on the Law, and that of Jonathan on the Prophets ; thefe were probably made foon after the captivity, or at leaft before the time of Chrift, but they are blended with more modern comments. The other targums are of much later date. The targums are printed in the fecond edition of the Hebrew Bible, publiftied at Bafil, by Buxtorf the Father, in 1610. [f] The Hebrew Bible, according to Houbigant, (Proleg. p. 94, 96,) was firft printed by R. Jacob ben Chairn, but Kennicott fays, that this was not publilhed till 1528, and that therefore it was fubfequent to that revifed by Felix Pratenfis. publilhed at Venice, 1 5 1 7. There is ft ill extant in Eton Li- brary, a vellum copy of the Chetubim, or Hagiographa, printed according to Dr. Pellet's account at Naples, in 14S7, and pro- bably deflgned as a fecond or third part to the edition of the prophets, printed, according to Le Long, at Soncino, in 14S6* C4 Sea 24 INTRODUCTION. lilried at Venice, Antwerp, and Aijifterdam, as well as in other places. which have their refpective merits and defects; but perhaps, the mo it important edition, that, which does honour to our country, is the cele- brated work of the late Dr. Kennicott, who, a few years fmcc, publifhed his Bible, containing the very accurate text of Vander Hooght, with the variations of near 700 different manufcripts, collected at a great expence, and collated with great labour and care [g], together with the variations of numberlefs Samaritan manufcripts, compared with the Samaritan text, as pubiiiried in the London Polyglot [h]. From . i See Le Long and Wolfius, Bibliot. Heb. 2. 397. This was fol- lowed by many others. See Kennicott's Hift. of the Heb. Text. 6th period. That of Vander Hooght, publifhcd at Amfterdam in 1705, and that of Houbigant, publifhcd in 1753, are the moft dif- tinguiihed and correct. The firft Bible that ever was printed, was a Latin Bible, publifhed at Mentz, about A. D. 1452. A copy of a fecond or third edition of this printed at Mentz in 1462, with metal types, by John Fauft, (whom fome fuppofe to have been the firft printer) and Peter Schaffer, is in the king of France's Library, and a f.rft volume of thL edition is in' the Bodleian Library, and another firft volume was brought to England in the Pinelli collection, together with a laft volume of one which had the appearance of being Ix ill more ancient ; it had no date. There certainly were two Bibles publifhed before 1462, vid. Pinelli Catalogue. Michael Maittaire, Ann. Typogr. T. 1. p. 272. Catalog. HLtorico-Critic. Biblioth. Inftruft. Vol. Theol. p. 32. 'and 14 Vol. of Acad, des Infer ip. p. 238. ' [g] The Lamed M. de Roffi has fince publifhcd the variations of many more, which he collated. [hJ The word Polyglot is derived from Uohv$ much, and yhuTix. a to'gue; it means a Bible with the texts of feveral languages ; INTRODUCTION. &5 From the earlieft ages of the primitive church, tranflations have been made into various languages [i] ; but it would be foreign from the defign of this introduction to enter into a particular account of the different verlions that have been made, at different times, into other languages : we are concerned only with our Englifh tranilation, of which it may be ne- cefTarv to give fome account, after we (hall have taken a Ihort view of the preceding verlions, which have been made into the language of this country. It is pofiible that the firft inhabitants of Britain, who are laid to have been converted to chrifcianity, had at leaft fome of the fcriptures in their own tongue [k] ; but the earlieft tranllations, of which we have any account in our hiftory, are thofe of the Saxon writers, who enabled their countrymen to read the fcriptures in their own language. It appears from writers contemporary with Adelm, or Aldhelm, that there was then extant, a tranllation of the fcriptures, or of a part of them at leaft, in the vulgar tongue [l] ; and it is known that Adelm, who was the firft biihop of Sherborne, tranilated the Pfalter into the languages ; there are Polyglots publifhed in Spain, at Antwerp, at Paris, and London. [ij Theodor. ad Gra?c. Infid. Serm. 5. Eufeb. Dem. Evan. Lib. III. c. ult. UrTer. Hift. Dogm. de Script. & Sac. Vernac. [k] M. Parker, de Antiq. Ecc. Erit. Teft. Ufli. de Prirnord, Eccles. Brit an. [l] The Saxon homilies exhort the people to read the fcrip- tures. Vid. alfo Adelm. de Virginit. & Bede, Lib. III. cap. 5, ab Ann. 634. Saxon SG INTRODUCTION- Saxon tongue, about A. D. 706. Ingulphus [m] fpeaks of a Pfalter of St. Guthlack, who was a con- temporary of Adelm, and the firit Saxon anchorite, and Mho influenced Ethel bald, king of Mercia, to found the monastery of Croyland, and this Pfaltcr in the Latin tongue, Lambert profeffes to have feen, [n] among the records belonging to Croyland [o]. This was ibon followed by the Latin, and Saxon tranilations of the Pl'alter, and Gofpel, which indeed frequently appeared, efpecially upon any change in the language. The Pfalter and the Gofpel [p], or as fome fay, all the books of the Bible [q], were tranllated into the Anglo-Saxon, towards the beginning of the f m] Ingulf. Cent. I. c. S3. [n] Lambert in Refpon. ad Art. 26, Epif. [o] There is alfo in the public library at Cambridge, a tranf- lation of the Pfalms into Latin and Englifh, and another old Latin tranflation with an interlineary Saxon verfion was in the Cotton Library, in the fame character with the charter of King Ethclbald, which is dated at A. D. 736. Vid. Ufler. Hift. Bogmat, p. 104. U flier informs us, that Mr. Robert Bowyei was in pofleflion of a Saxon tranflation of the Evangelifts, by Ecbert, (who is called alfo Ekfrid, Eadfrid, and Eckfrid, Bifhop of Landisfern,) who died A. D. 721. vid. Ufler, Hift. Dogm. c. 5. Egbert wrote alfo, a copy of the Evangelifts in Latint to which, Aldred a prieft, added a Saxon interlineary tranflation, which was in the Cotton Library, Vid. Wharton, Anglia Sac. Pars I. p. 695-. Fox, by the encouragement of Matthew Par- ker, published, in 157 1, a Saxon verfion of the Evangelifts, made from the Vulgate, before it was revifed by St. Jerom, of which the author is unknown. [p] Vid. Bale. [oj Fox, and Caius de Ant. Cantab. Lib. I. eighth INTRODUCTION. 27 eighth century, by venerable Bede, who is related to have finimed the lait chapter of the gofpel as he expired [r]. The whole Bible was tranflated into the Anglo- Saxon, by order of king Alfred. He undertook the verfion of the Pfalms himlelf, but did not live to complete it Another Anglo-Saxon verfion appears to have been made ibon after [s]. Several books of the Old Teitament were tranf- lated into the Anglo-Saxon, by Elfred or Elfric, Abbot of Malmeibury, and afterwards A. D. 995. Archbifliop of Canterbury. The Pentateuch, Jofhua, and Judges, of this tranflation were pre- ferved in the Cotton library, and publifhed at Ox* ford in 1699, by Edmund Thwaites [t]. One of the tirft attempts at a tranflation into the Englifh language, as fpoken after the conqueft, ap- pears to have been made by Richard Ptolle, an Her- mit of Hampole in Yorkfhire, who tranflated, and wrote a glofs upon the Pfalter, and a metrical para- phrafe of the Book of Job. He died A. D. 134& A complete tranflation of the whole Bible, in- cluding the apocryphal books, was foon afterwards [r] Fox fays, that he tranflated the gofpel of St. John a fe- cond time, but Cuthbert, his fcholar, tells us, that he finifued at John vi. 9. [s] This was publiflied with a Latin interlineary text, by John Spelman, in 164.0. Dr. Brett fuppofes this to have been Alfred's Pfalter. There is another interiineary Pfalter in the library at Lambeth, apparently of a later period. Spelman publiflied, with his Pfalter, the various readings of four manufcripts. [t] Le Long. Calmet. & Lewis Haft, of Tranllat. performed t% INTRODUCTION. performed by John WicklifT[u]. It was a literal yerfion, made from Latin, with the prologues of St. Jerom, to the books of the New Teftament, and ap- peared between A. D. 1360 and 13S0. The New Teftament of this tranflation, which is ftill extant in many manufcripts, was publiihed by Lewis in 1731. Some writers have conceived that an Englifh tranfla- tion was made before the time of WicklifY [x], and there are fome copies of an Engliih tranflation at Ox- ford [ y], which Ufher affigns to an earlier period ; but it is probable that thefe may be genuine, or corrected copies of Wicklifi 's tranflation. Lewjs is of opinion, that John Trevifa, who is by fome related to have made an entire Englifh verfion of the lcriptures about 13S7, [u] Huff. Replicat. con. T. Stokes, Arund. Conftit. Lyn- wood's GloiTary, &c* The New Teftament of Wickliffe's ver- fion fold for four marks and forty pence, as appears from the regifter of W. Alnewich, Bifliop of Norwich, 1429, as quoted by Fox. Vid. James, Corrupt, of Fathers, p. 277. Fox's preface to Saxon Gofpels, A. D. 1 57 1 . [x] Dr. James was of this opinion : fee Corrupt. Fathers, p. 225. Eifhop Bonner profefles to have feen one tranflated above eighty years before that of WicklifFe : fo little, however, were the fcriptures ufed in the time of WicklifFe, that fome fe- cuhir priefts of Armagh, who were fent by Archbifhop Fitzralph, (the tranflator of the Bible into Irifh) to ftudy divinity at Ox- ford, about A. D. 1357, were obliged to return, becaufe they could no where find a Latin Bible. The Clergy were then feldom. able to read Latin. See Fox's Extracts from Longland's Regker. [vj There is a copy of the Old Teftament of this tranflation in the Bodleian Library, one at Queen's College, and one at 1 ambeth ; and of the New Teftament, one in the Bodleian, and two at Cambridge, in Sydney, and Magdalen Colleges. did INTRODUCTION. <2Q did in fact only paint a few fentences on the chapel walls of Berkeley Caftle, and interfperfe a few verfes in his writings [z], with feme variations from the received tranllation. It is however highly probable that others betide Wickiiff, undertook this import- ant work, and tranllated at leait (bine parts of the fcriptures. Hitherto tranflations were made only from the Italic verfion, or from that of St. Jerom. Great objections were, however, made to thefe and all tranflations, as promoting a too general, and promiicuous ufe of the fcriptures, which was con- ceived to be productive of evil confequences, and 'WicklirFs Eible, particularly as it was judged to be an unfaithful tranllation, was condemned to be burnt In the time of Richard the Second, a bill was brought into the Houfe of Lords, A. D. 1390, to prohibit the ufe of Englith Bibles. The bill, however, being ftrongly reprobated, and oppoled by John Duke of Lancaiter [a] was rejected ; but about A. D. 140S, Arundel, Archbimop of Canterbury, decreed in a convocation of the clergy at Oxford, that no unau- thorized perfon mould tranilate any text of fcripturt; into Englifh, or any other language by way of book, and that no tranflation made either in, or fince Wickliff's time ihould be read, till approved by the [z] Lewis I lift, of Tranflations, [a] Ufher, Parker, Linwood, and Collier. The Duke is re- lated to have faid, " We will not be the dregs of all, feeing other nations have the law of God, which is the law of our faith, wr'tten in their own language." Vid. Fox's pref. to Saxon gofpel, A. D. J 5 7 1 - U:her de Script. & Sjtcr. Van. bifliop 30 INTRODUCTION. bifhop of the dioceie, or in a provincial council This decree was enforced by great perfections, and as about the fame time Pope Alexander the fifth condemned ail tranflations into the vulgar tongue, they were as much as it was poffible, fuppreffed till the reformation. It appears, indeed, from our bimops regifters, that in confequence of Arundel's commiffion, feveral perfons were burnt, on refufing to abjure their prin- ciples, for having read the New Teftament, and the Ten Commandments, in WicklifT's tranilation [bJ.*' In the reign of Henry VIII. whole violent paffions were providentially rendered conducive to the refor- mation in this country, William Tyndal, or as he was otherwife called, Hickins [cj, having left the king- dom on account of his religious principles, trans- lated at Antwerp, by the afliftance of John Fry, or Fryth, and William Roye, the New Teftament from [3] At that time the people were Co little acquainted with the Scriptures, and To ignorant even of the language in which they were originally written, that upon the appearance of printed editions of the fcriptures in the Hebrew and Greek originals, fome of the more illiterate Monks declaimed from the pulpits, that " there was now a new language discovered called Greek, of which people fliould beware, lince it was that which pro- duced all hereiies : that in this language was eome forth a book called the New Teftament, which was now in every body's hands, and was full of thorns and briers. And there had alfo another language now darted up, which they called Hebrew, and that they who learnt it were turned Hebrews." Vid. Hody dc Bibl. Text. p. 465. Erafai. Epift. Lib. XXXI. No. 42. edit. 1642. [c] Hift. & Antiq. Oxon. Lib. II. p. 375. vol. ii. the 5 INTRODUCTION. 31 the Greek, and printed it in oclavo, in 159.6 [d]. The written copies of Wickliff's tranllation had been long known, but this was the firft time that any part of the fcriptures was printed in Englilh. It appeared at Hamborough, or Antwerp, and was dil'perfed at London, and Oxford. Wolfey, and the bifhops publilhed prohibitions, and injunctions againft it as falfe, and heretical. Tonftal, bifnop of London, and Sir Thomas More, bought up almoit the whole im- preflion, and burnt it at St. Paul's Crofs, which, whether or not defigned to ierve Tyndal [e], did molt certainly afiift him in the continuance of his defigns [f]. The venders of Tyndal's work were condemned by the ftar-chamber to ride with their faces to the horfes tails, with papers on their heads, and with the books which they had difperfed tied about them, to the ftandard in Cheapiide, and they themfeives were compelled to throw them into the fire, and were afterwards amerced by a considerable, fine [g]. The clergy now profeiTed an intention of publilhing the NewTeftament themi'elves, and a pro- [d] Fox's Aft s. Uiher de Script, p. 187. Joye's Apology, [e] Jortin's Life of Eraf. Collier's EceleC Hifl. vol. ii. p. 22. Sir Thomas More's Engl. Works, vol. ii. p. 369. The Dutch editions were foon publifhed, and difperfed at a cheap rate, at about thirteen pence each. The Englifh Books were fold for about 3s. 6d. Three editions were fold before 1530. Thus were eyes opened to the abufes of popery. [f] Sir Thomas More objected to translations in general, and particularly confidered Tyndal's as erroneous, efpecrally in matters of church government. Vid. Spelman's Papers. Burnet, vol. i. b. 2. p. 160. [c] Hall, Htenry VIII. Fuller, &c. cjamation 3Z INTRODUCTION'* clamation was iflued againft Tyndal's work ; but before the appearance of this proclamation, Tyndal, by the help of Miles Coverdale, had tranflated the Pentateuch, which was printed at Hamburgh, in small oc~tavo, in 153Q [h]. In the fame year he publifhed a corrected tranflation of the New Tefta- ment; and in 1,531, a tranflation of Jonah. As he had but little knowledge of the Hebrew, he pro- bably tranflated from the Latin, and his work had great merit, considering the difadvantages under which he laboured [i]. His prefaces, which re- flected on the bilhops and clergy, were chiefly com- plained of, though eagerly read by the people; and provoked Henry, at the mitigation of lus miniitcrs, to procure that he fnould be i'eized in Flanders, where he was afterwards ftrangled, and his body was burnt. In 1535, Miles Coverdale publifhed a tranflation of the whole Bible, which, as fome have fuppofed, was printed at Zurich. It was dedicated to the king, probably .by pcrmiflion, though Tyndal was now in [a] Mr. Thorefby fpeaks. of a copy printed at Marpurg, in Hefle, by Hans Luft, in 1530. Vid. Ducat. Leod. Lewis fays, that Tyndal tranflated this Pentateuch from the Hebrew, Vid. flift. TranfL p. 70. [1] The tranflation of the Pentateuch was finiflied in 152S ; but Tyndal being fhipwrecked in his voyage to Hamburgh, loft all his papers, and was obliged to begin his work again. He was ftrangled and burnt near Felford Caftle, about eighteen miles from Antwerp, praying that God would open the king of Eng- land'ocyes. Vid. Fox's Martyrs. He received only 14s. Flemifh for his work. prifon INTRODUCTION. 33 prifon for his work. Coverdale ftiled it a fpecial tranflation, and it patted under his name ; but it is iuppofed to have contained much of Tyndal's la* hours, though none of his prologues, or notes [k]. When the papal reitri£tions were no longer re- fpe&ed in this country, it was ltrenuoufly urged, that if Tyndal's tranflation were erroneous, a new one mould be made; and Cranmer had mihcient in- tereft in convocation, in 1535, to obtain, tiiat a pe- tition lliould be made to the king for that purpoie. Henry, influenced partly by argument, and partly by the intereii with Queen Anne [l] had in his af- fections, commanded that it mould be immediately let about. Cranmer began with the New Teftament, afiigning a portion of the tranflation to be revifed by each billiop. But the refuial of Stokefly, Bifliop of London, to correal his portion, appears to have put a ftop to the work at preient. In 1536, Cromwell directed, in his injunctions to the clergy, " that every parfon or proprietary of a church, (hould pro- vide a bible in Latin and Englifh, to be laid in the choir for every one to read at his pleafure." In 1537 was publiihed a folio edition of the bible, which was called Matthevvs's Bible, of Tyndal's and Rogers's tranflation ; it was printed by Grafton, and Whitchurch, at Hamborough [mJ. Tyndal is faid to have tranflated to the end of Chronicles, or, as [k] This was reprinted in large quarto in 1550, and again with a new title in 1553. [l] Ann Boleyn. [m] The 1500 copies cod 500I. then a large fum, D fomc 34 INTRODUCTION. fbme ftate, of Nehemiah, if not all the canonical books both of the Old and New Teftament [n], and Rogers completed the reft, partly from Cover- dale's tranflation. He had compared it with the Hebrew, Greek, and Latin Bibles, and inierted prefaces and notes from Luther. As the name of Tyndal, who had been burnt for an heretic, was now become in fome degree obnoxious, Rogers pub- lished it under the feigned name of Matthews. It was dedicated, and preiented at Cranmer's requeft, by Cromwell, to the king, who gave his aiient tiiat it mould be printed in England, and generally read ; and notwithstanding the oppoiition of the clergy, the book was received by the publick with great joy. Another edition was afterwards prepared, col- lected, and collated with the original, by Miles Co- verdale ; and Grafton and Whitchurch obtained leave to publilli it at Paris on account of the cheap- nefs and fuperiority of the paper. But notwith- ftanding the French King's licence, the Inquifition in 1538 obliged the printers to fly as heretics, and very few of the impmffions could be refcued from the flames [o]. But the prefles, and other printing appurtenances, being afterwards procured and brought to London, the bible was publiihed there in ] 539 [p] by the King's authority. This was called the [n] Itcertainly contained this tranflation of Jonah. See More 's Confut. of Tyndal's Anfwer, 1532; and others tranflated different parts. [o] A few that an officer of the inquifition had fold as vvafte paper, were recovered. The impreflion confided of 2500. [?] Strype's Life of Cranmer, p. 444. Bible 8 INTRODUCTION. 35 Bible in the great or large volume. It was publifhed in folio, and had afronrifpiece before it, defigned by Holbein ; but neither Coverdale's, nor Cranmer*s preface, nor Tyndal's notes ; only an account of the fucceffion of the Kings of Judah, and directions in what manner the Old Teitament mould be read [qJ. In this edition thefe paiTages in the Latin, which were not to be found in the original, were printed in a fmall letter, as was alio the controverted Text in St. John's Epiitle. It was objected to by the Bilhops as faulty ; but as they admitted that it contained no herefies, the King laid, " then in God's name let it go abroad among my people." The epiftles, gof- pels, and pfalms, of this tranflation, which were in- ferted into our Liturgy when compiled, and after- wards reviled, in the reign of Edward the Sixth, were retained in it till the reftoration of Charles the Second, when the gofpels and epiftles were changed for thofe of King James's tranflation. The old pfalter, however, was retained, and is ftill read as excellent, and familiar by long ufe. An order was foon afterwards ifmed out, that every church Ihould be furnimed with one of thefe Bibles. In 1.539, a fecond or third edition of this was re- vifed, and publiihed by Richard Taverner, which had many marginal notes of Matthews's Bible; and this [q] This edition, as well as Matthews's Bible, is divided into five tomes. The apocryphal books, which are contained in the fourth of thefe divifions, are improperly intitled the books of Ha- giographa, as fome of them are called in afecondary fenfe, or perhaps by corruption, by St. Jerom. Vid. Hieron. pra?f. in job. Reic- hold's Pry'eft, and Jaifces's Corrupt, of Fathers, Par. II. p. 22. D 2 was 56 INTRODUCTION. was followed by other4 editions. In 1540, appeared a very improved edition, corrected by Archbifhop Cranmer. It contained a judicious preface, written by him, and was called Cranmer's Bible, or the Bible of the greater volume. It was republimed in 1541, and countenanced by authority, and a proclamation was itTued, that every parifli church which was yet unprovided mould procure it, under a penalty, if neglected, of 40s. per month [r]. The Llomifh Bifhops ftill continued their endeavours, in oppoii- tion to Cranmer, and attempted to corrupt the iub- fequent editions by a multiplication of Latin words [s]; and though Cranmer obtained an order that the Bible mould be examined by both urfiverfities, it appears not to have been put in execution. In 1542, an aft of Parliament was obtained by the adverfaries of tranllations, condemning Tyndal's Bible, and the prefaces and notes of all other edi- tions [t], and prohibiting their perufal in publick, under pain of imprifonment. Cranmer procured an indulgence for the higher ranks to read them in pri- vate. The ufe of the fcriptures being very much abufed, the interdiction was continued, and confirmed during Henry's reign. In the fhort reign of Edward the Sixth, all pcrfons were allowed the ufe of tranllations ; and new edi- [:r] It was publifhed in folio; the price was fixed at ios. unbound, and 12s. bound; fix were placed in St. Paul's church by JBifhop Bonner: .fsj Matt* Parker. Antiq. Lewis, p. 146. f.TJ ■Set: • th- advancement of true Religion, An. 34. Jlenry VIIJL. tions INTRODUCTION. 3*T tions of Taverner's and of Matthews's- Bibles {u] were publilhed, and the Bible of the larger. volume was ordered to be procured lor churches [x]. Every ecclefialtical peribn under the degree of Bachelor of Divinity, was enjoined to provide a New Teftainent in Latin and Engliih, with the paraphrafe of Eraf- mus ; and Gardiner, Bilhop of Winchefter, was com- mitted to the Eleet for re fu ling compliance with thei'e meafures, and perlilting in his opinions, he was at length deprived. It was ordered alio, that the epii- tle and gofpel ihould be read at high mafs on Sun- days and Holidays, and a chapter of the New Tefta- inent in the morning, and of the Old at evening fong. In Mary's reign, different principles prevailed : all books which were confidercd as heretical, as thofe containing the Common Prayer, and fufpected copies of the Bible, were condemned. The Gofpellers, as they were then called, fled abroad, and a new trans- lation of the Scriptures into Engliih, appeared at Geneva, of which the New Teftainent was publilhed [u] One of Taverner's in 1549, and one of Matthews's in 155 1. Eleven impreffions of the whole Engliih Bible, and fix of the New Teftament, were publilhed : fome were alfo reprinted from Tyndal's, Coverdale's, and Cranmer's editions. Vid. Fuller and Lewis. [x] Thefe were to be procured at the expence of the parifh. Before, the impropriator defrayed half the charge of the books ufed in the church, or fometimes the parfon. In times of po- pery, miffals, breviaries, and manuals, being written, were very expenfive, and bought by the reclors, as alfo when reclories were eftablifhed. But there were many difputes upon this fubjeel, and the rectors often compelled the vicars to pay fox binding the books. Vid. Lewis, Hift. Tranf. p. 176. D 3 in 38 INTRODUCTION. in 1557; but the remainder of the work did not come forth till 1560. It was diftinguifhed by cal>- viniftical annotations, and held in high eftimation by the puritans [y]. Elizabeth was indirectly requeited at her coro- nation, to countenance a tranflation, the Bible be- ing prefented to her in her proceffion, which ihe ac* cepted with great appearance of gratitude and vene- ration ; and the Bifhops were foon afterwards ap- pointed to prepare a tranflation. New editions of [y] Above thirty editions of this were publifhed by the Queen's and King's printers between 1560 and 1616, and others were printed at Edinburgh, Geneva, Amfterdam, &c. The New Teftament of this is faid to have been the firft Englifh edi- tion of the fcriptures which was divided into verfes. The Greek and Latin1 Bibles were not anciently divided into chapters ox ■verfes, at leaft, not like thofe now ufed. Stephen Langton, archbifhop of Canterbury, in the reigns of King John, and of King Henry III. is faid to have firft contrived the divifion into chapters ; others afcribe the invention to Cardinal Hugo, a Do, jninican Monk, of the thirteenth century, who adopted alfo fub, divifions, diftinguifhed by the feven firft letters of the alphabet placed in the margin, as convenient for the ufe of the Concord, ance, which he firft planned for the Vulgate. About 1445, "Rabbi Mordecai Nathan, alias Rabbi Ifaac Nathan, a weftern ]e\v, to facilitate the conduct of a controverfy with the Chriftians, introduced this divifion of chapters into the Hebrew Bibles, and refumed alfo the ancient divifion into verfes numerically diftin- guifhed by marginal letters at every fifth verfe ; and from him the Chriftians received and improved the plan ; and Robert Stephens adopted the divifion into the New Teftament, of which he pub-, Jifhed a Greek edition in 1 55 1 . Vid. Prefat. Buxtorf. ad. Con- cord. Bibl. Hebraic. Morin, Exercit. Bibl. Par. II. Exert, vii. cap. iii. YrxL ad Concord. Gra?c. N. Teft. Fabrici Biblioth. Qnec. Lib. IV. c. v. Prid. vol. I. Book V, the INTRODUCTION. 39 the Geneva, and of the great Bible were publifhed. An act of Parliament was like wife patted for a tranf- lation of the Bible into Welih, which was printed in 1556. In 1568, Archbifhop Parker's very correct and improved tranilation, undertaken by the royal com- mand, and reviled by the Biihops, under the direc- tion of the Archbifhop, and called the Bifhop"s Bible, appeared in folio [z], with a preface by Parker, and the initial letter of every tranflator iubjoined to his portion ; and towards the conclufion of Elizabeth's reign, Ambrofe Ufher, brother of the primate of Armagh, rendered much of the Old Teftament into Engliih, from the Hebrew ; which was never publifhed [a]. Objections, however, being raifed againft. all theie tranflations, as well as againft others made in oppolition to them, it was determined in the reign of King James the Firft, when the principles of the re- formation were thoroughly citablilhed, to have a new verfion, which mould be as much as poffible free from all the errors, and defects of former tranf- lations. Accordingly fifty-four learned, and emi- [z] It was printed in a thick quarto, and afterwards frequently in folio and quarto in 1569. This Bible was ufed in the publick fervice for near forty years ; but the Geneva Bible being more adapted to the prevailing opinions, was moll read in private. See Le Long, p. 430, Lewis, &c. [a] Daniel, Ecclefiaftes, Lamentations, and Job, were tranf-' lated by Hugh Broughton. The manufcript of this verfion is itill in three tomes quarto, in the library of Trinity, college, in Dublin. D 4 nent 4(5 INTRODUCTION. nent men, were appointed. Seven of thefe, how- ever, either died, or from diffidence declined the talk. Every poffible precaution was taken to pre- vent objection to the execution of the work. The remaining forty-ieven were ranged into fix divifi'ms [b]. Every individual tranflated the portion affigned to the divifion, all of which translations were collated together, and when each company had determined on the conftruclion of their part, it was propofed to the other divifions for general approbation. They had the benefit of conlulting all preceding tranila- tions, but were directed to follow, as nearly as it might be confiftent with fidelity, the ordinary Bible, which was diftinguimed by the appellation of the Bifhop's Bible. The contributions and affiitance of the learned were folicited from all parts, and dif- ferent opinions were deliberately examined by the tranflators, without any regard to the complaints againft their tardinefs in the execution of the work. The tranflators met at Oxford, and Cambridge, and Weftminfter [c]. They began the work in 1607, and [b] Vid. Jdhnfon's account. Fuller, Selden, and Collier. [c] Three copies were fent to London, and two perfons from each company were feledled to revife the whole work. It was afterwards reviewed by Rilfon, Bifhop of Winchefter, and .Dr. Myles Smith. Thefe two perfons prefixed the arguments to the feveral books, and Dr. Smith, afterwards Bifhop of Glou- cefter, wrote the preface now prefixed to the folio editions. Bifhop Bancroft is fuppofed to have been the ovcrfeer under his majefty, to whom it is faid, in the preface, that the Church was much INTRODUCTION. 4i ihkI fimfhed it in about three years." The death of Mr. Edward Lively, who was well (killed in the original languages, foinewhat retarded the pub- lication. It came out, however, in 16'ii, with r II the improvements that could be derived from united induitry, and conjoined abilities. It wras rirft publiihed in folio, in black letter, but a quarto edi- tion was publiihed in 10112, in the Roman type. It has fmce been repeatedly pubiifhed in both. The Komanilts [d] ftarted many unreasonable objections againtt this tranllation ; and the Prefbyterians pro- felled themfelves difTatisfied. It was how ever allow- ed, even by Cromwell's committee, to be the heft ex- tant ; and certainly it is a molt wonderful and in- comparable work, equally remarkable for the ge- neral fidelity of its conftruction, and the magnificent fimplicity of its language. That it is not a perfect work is readily admit- ted ; the great advancement made fmce the pe- riod of its tranllation, in the original languages • much bound. The marginal references, and the chronological index annexed, which arc publiihed chiefly in the quarto editions, were afterwards futnifhed by Biihop Lloyd. ■ [d] The Engliih Romanifts, finding -it impoffible to prevent the introduction of tranflations, publiihed the New Teltamenfat Rheims in 1582 from the Latin, in a manner as favourable to their opinions as poffible, and after-wards in 1609, they publiihed at Doway a tranfiation of the Old Teftament, from the Vulgate, with annotations.. They have therefore a tranfiation of the who!^ Bible, which, however, they are forbidden to read without a licence from their fuperiors. The French Romanifts have no au- thorized tranfiation into their language. the 42 INTRODUCTION. the improvement that has Succeeded in critical learn- ing ; and the many difcoveries that have been ftruck out in the general purfuits of knowledge, have much tended to illuftrate the facred writings, and enabled us to detect many errors and defects of tranflation that might now be corrected and re- moved. Preceding verfions were, perhaps, in lbme inftances, more luccefsful ; and fubfequent trans- lations of individual books may, in lbme parts, have been more faithful ; and, which is a ftill more important advantage, we are now in pofTeflion of many hundred manufcripts that the tranllators under King James had no opportunities of confulting [e]. We are likewife emancipated from fuperftitious pre- judices concerning the univerfal purity of the He- brew text, and from a flaviih credulity with regard to the Maforetic points. Whenever, therefore, it ihall be judged expedient by well-advifed and con- federate meafures, to authorize a revifal of this tranf- lation, it will certainly be found capable of many, and great improvements [f]. As fuch a work, de- liberately planned, and judicioully executed, would unqueftionably contribute much to the advancement of true religion, many pious men have exprefled their earlieit wifhes for its accompliihment ; and [e] Our tranflation was made from manufcripts of three, and four hundred years old, fince it agrees with thofe only. But more ancient manufcripts are more correct, and more confiftent with the Samaritan Pentateuch, and ancient verfions. [f] Bilhop Lloyd's edition of our tranflation is improved in fome refpeclts. Dr. Paris likewife revifed it in 1745. dotibdefs, INTRODUCTION. 43 doubtlefs, in due time, by the blefling of God, the prudent governors of our church will provide for its execution. It is a work not lightly to be taken in hand, and perhaps no fingle perfon is adequate to the talk. It is to be prefumed, at lead, that when a new tranflation lliall be countenanced by publick authority, it will be undertaken with the fame cau- tious, and deliberate meafures, that were obferved under King James, It mould be the production of collective induftry, and general contribution ; and the prejudices and miltakes which muft characterize the works of individuals, mould be corrected by united enquiry, difpaflionate examination, and fair criticifm. They, who already confecrate their la~ bours to the tafk of tranflating the whole, or any part of the fcriptures, are entitled to the publick gratitude and encouragement ; their endeavours muft at leaft contribute to illuftrate the facred pages, and tend to facilitate the great work of a national tranflation. Till, however, the execution of this work fhall be judged expedient, every firicere and well-difpofed admirer of the holy oracles may be fa- tisfied Avith the prefent tranflation, which is, indeed, highly excellent ; being in its doctrines uncorrupt, and in its general conflruetion, faithful to the original. The captious chiefly, and fuch as feek for blemiihes, are difpofed to cavil at its minute imperfections ; which, however in a work of fuch ferious and in- terefting value, they may require correction, fhould not be invidioufly detailed. The few pafiages, which, by being erroneoufly tranflated, have fur- nifhed 4 4 INTRODUCTION. nifhed occafion for unjuft and licentious afperfions againit the facred volume, are fo clearly and fatis- factorily explained, and vindicated by judicious comments, that no one can be milled in his con- ceptions, who is defirous of obtaining inltruction. To amend the rendering of thele paflages, will be the object of all future translators, who will un- doubtedly be defirous of adhering as much as pos- fible to the prefent verfion, and of adopting, where they can, a conftruction, familiarized by long uie, and endeared by habitual reverence ; of which the ityle has long fe'rved as a ftandard of our language, and of which the peculiar harmony and excellence could never be improved by any change that re- finement might fubititute. OF [ 45 ] OF THE PENTATEUCH. f I UIE Pentateuch, under which title the five -*- Books of Moles are uiually diftinguiftied, is a word of Greek original [a]. It was probably firft prefixed to the Septuagintverfion, and was defigned to include Genefis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy ; all of which were written by Mofes, in his own hand, probably in the order in which they now itand in our translation, though not diftributcd by their author into books, but coin- poied in one continued work, as they remain to this day among the Jews, with no other diviiion but [a] From rTeilc five, and 1=^05 volume. It is called by the Jews, Chomez, a word fynonymous with Pentateuch ; alfo Thorah, the Law, a word which, when ufed in a larger fenfe, is applied to the whole volume of the Scriptures. that 46* OF THE PENTATEUCH. that of little, and great Paraiches [b]. It is uncer- tain when they were divided into" books, but proba- bly the divifion was firft adopted in the Septuagint vernon, as- the titles prefixed are of Greek deriva- tion ; they were however diitinguifhed as five books in the time of Jofephus, That the Pentateuch was written by Mofes, we are authorized to affirm by the concurrent teftimony of antiquity, and by the uniform report of uninter- rupted tradition. He fpeaks of hirriielf in. many [b] Parches, from UHD, to divide. The divifion of the law into parafches, or feclions, is, by fome, attributed to Mofes ; by others, with more probability, to Ezra ; they amounted to fifty-four, that by reading one of thefe portions every Sabbath in the fynagogue, the people might fulfil a fancied obligation to read the law once publickly every year ; the intercalated years contained fifty. four Sabbaths, and in other years a reduction corrcfpondent to the number of Sab- baths was eafily made, by an occafional junction of two chap- ters. Thefe greater portions were fubdivided into feven fmal- ler parts, called pefukim, or verfes, which were probably in- ferted by Ezra for the ufe of the Targumifts, or Chaldec in- terpreters, who after the captivity read a Chaldaic verfion of the fcriptures, with the original, for the benefit of thofe who had forgotten the Hebrew tongue, reading verfe for verfe alter- nately. The fame divifion was adopted in the prophetical books, when the reading of the law was forbidden by' An- tiochus Epiphanes, but in them three verfes were read toge- ther. Thefe divifions are by no means the fame as thofe in our Bibles. The Jews read half of the fettion on the Monday, the remainder on the Thurfday, and on the Sabbath the whole of the fettion, both morning and evening. Vid. Prid. fub. An. 444. parts, OF THE PENTATEUCH. 47 parts, as the appointed author of its contents [cj* It is mentioned as the work of Moles under the title of the Law, by almoft all the facred writers, and cited as indifputablyhis \vork[n], and it was received as fuch by the Jews and Samaritans, by every feci of the Hebrew, and of the Chriftian church. These books, indeed, could not have been writ- ten fubfequently to the time of Mofes, for they are add reded to the Ifraelit.es as contemporaries, and they never afterwards could have been impofed as a ge- nuine work upon his countrymen, whole religion and government were built upon them. But what is fufficient to eftabliih, not only the authenticity of thefe five books, as the work of Mofes, but alfo their claim to a divine original, as dictated by the fpirit of God ; is, that the words and laws of Mofes are cited by the facred writers, as the words and laws of God [e], and that they were appealed to by our Saviour, and his Apoftles, on various occafions, as the genuine work of Moles ; as the production of an infpired perfon, or prophet [f] ; and on a folemn occalion, Chrift confirmed every jot and tittle of the [c] Exod. xvii. 14. xxiv. 4 — 7. xxxiv. 27. Numb, xxxiii. 4. Deut. xxxi. 9, 19, 22, 24. Abbadie, Verite de la Relig. Chre- tien. Jofeph. cont. Apion, Lib. I. [d] Jofhua i. 7, 8. viii. 34, 35. Judg. iii. 4. 2 Kings xxiii. 25. xiv, 6. 2 Chron. xxx. 16. xxiii. 18. Ezra viii. 3. Nehem. i. 7, 8. ix. and the Pfalms and Prophets paflim. [e] Nehem. viii. 14. Jerem. vii. 23. Matt, xv, 4. Galat, iv. 30. Heb. viii, 5, x. 30, James ii. 8. [f] John i, 45. v. 46^, 47. Luke xxiv. 27. ;uw, 48 CF THE JPENtATEtCH. Law, and bare teftimony to the infallible accom- plilhment of its defigns, and promifes [g]. These books, as has been before obferved, were immediately after their compolition depofited in the tabernacle [h], and thence transferred to the tem- ple, where they were preferved with the moft vigi- lant care : every exprefiion was deemed infpired by the articles of the Jewilh creed. The Jews main- tained that God had more care of the letters and fyllables of the Lav/, than of the itars in Heaven, and that upon each tittle of it, whole mountains of doctrine hung ; hence every individual letter was numbered, and notice was taken how often it occur- red [i]. It was read every Sabbath day in the fy- nagogues [k], and again folemnly every feventh year. The prince was obliged to copy it [l], and the people were commanded to teach it their chil- dren, and to wear it as " figns on their hands, and frontlets between their eyes1' [m]. In the corrupt, and [g] Matt. v. 17, 18. Luke xvi. 17, 31. [hJ Deut. xxxi. 26. Somewhere on the outfide of the ark. Vid. 1 Kings viii. 9. 2 Chron. v. 10. [1] The Jews reduced the whole Law to 613 precepts, accord- ing to the number of the letters of the Decalogue, intimating that the whole Law was redudlively contained therein. [k] Luke iv. 16. Ads xiii. 15, 27. xv. 21. xxvii. 23. 2 Cor. Hi. 15. Hieron. cap. vi. Bava Bathra. Maimon. prref. in Chaz. Aben. Ezra, in ch. xxv. 16. R. David. Kimchi. Dcut. xxxi. 10, 24, 26. [l] Deut. xvii. 18, 19. xxvii. 3. xxxi. 10, 11. Tm] Exod. xiii. 9. Levit. x. 11. Deut. vi. 6 — 9, 21. xi. 18, 19. This was probably a figurative precept which the Jews 9 OF THE PENTATEUCH. AQ. and idolatrous reigns, indeed, of fome of the kings of Judah, th'e facred books appear to have been much neglected. In the reign of Jehoihaphat it was judged neceilary to carry about a book of the law, for the inltrueiion of the people [n], and many copies might have perifhed under ManaiTeth ; yet itill a fufficient number was always preferved by God's providence. It is mnetioned, indeed, in the book of Kings [o], as a particular circumitance, that in the time of Joiiah, the book of the Law was found by the high-prieft Hilkiah ; but this by no means implies, that all other copies had been de- ltroyed; for whether by the Book of the Law there mentioned, be underftood the original autograph of Mofes, (which was probably intended [p] ;) or only an authentic public copy, which might have been taken by the priefts from the fide of the ark of the covenant, topreferve it from the facrilegious violence of ManaiTeth ; it can by no means be fuppofed to have been the only book of the Lav/ then extant, as every King was obliged to copy it on his accef- Jews fuperftitioufly fulfilled in a literal fenfe, with phylacteries, inferibed bracelets, ], but alfo from the interpretations of the prophets ; and it is cer- tain that if the fenfual and duller ranks were unable to difcover the full extent of the promifes, yet the more inftrucled and more enlightened peribns un- derstood and confided in its Spiritual import [e]. Still, however, it mult be repeated, Mofes does not ground his laws on Spiritual lanftions, but ra- ther has recourie to the ftrongeft and moft affecting motives ot preient consideration, urgingGod's threat " of vifiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children [f]." It remains to be remarked, with refpeci to the laws delivered to the people of Ifrael, that fome were of a ge-neral and permanent, others of a con- fined and temporary nature. They are ufually dif- tinguimed into moral, ceremonial, and judicial. The ceremonial and the judicial laws are in the following books joined together, as the Hebrew re- ligion and polity were built up together in one fa- brick ; thefe laws, as adapted to the particular it ate [d] Hicron. Epift. Dardan. [e] Heb. xi. 8 — 16. The Mofaic covenant included that made to Abraham, which was a counterpart of the gofpel cove- nant, and of which the promifes were certainly Spiritual, and in the renewal of this covenant, together with that made at Sinai, Mofes blends temporal and Spiritual promifes. Vid. Gen. xvii. 7. Deut.xxix. 13. xxx. Gal. iii. 8, 17. Jude 14, 15. Acts xxiv. 14, 15, &c. Tacitus States, that the Jews believed in the im- mortality of the foul. See Hift. 1. 3. [f] Exod. xx. 5. Deut. v. 9. This denunciation againfl idolatry applied to punimments only in the prefent life, for God afterwards declared, that as to future retribution, the fori fhould not bear the iniquity of the father. Ezek. xviii. 20. F and 66 OF THE PENTATEUCH. zn$, government of the Ifraelites [o], and as often incapable of general application [h], are collectively reprefented as not obligatory on other nations. Many of thefe laws are indeed pronounced by Moles, to be " laws and ordinances for ever," " through all generations [i],'' and hence the Jews believe, that they never fhall be abolifhed [k], but it is cer- tain, that thefe expreflions nauft be underftood to mean only, that fuch laws ihould not be liable to ab- rogation by any human authority, and that they mould long continue ; but by no means, that they lliould never be reverfed by the fame authority, on which they were firit eftablifhed [l]. The ceremonial laws were unqueitionably tran- sient inititutions, defigned to intimate and foreftiew evangelical appointments. As therefore in their na- [g] Circumcifion, as a rite of diffinftion, was ufelefs when the barriers between the Jew and Gentile were thrown down, its figurative intention to promote purity of heart was preferved in the gofpel precepts, and its actual practice in hot countries, as conducive to cleannefs, was not forbidden, or difcouraged, but as it implied a lubferviency to the ritual law. [h] The number ©f the priefts and Levites was limited. All nations could not be ferved by the Aaronical piiefthood, neither could they refort three times a year to one place. [i] Exod. xii. 14 — 17. xxxi. 21. xl. 15. Levit.' iii. 17. vi. 18. vii. 36. x. 9. xxxiii. 14 — 21 — 31 — 41. xxiv. 3. Numb. xv. i£. xix. 10. [k] Vid. Malmon, More Nevoch. Par. II. cap. 38. \l] The ceremonial laws were fometimes difpenfed with, as was circumcifion in the wildernefs, where it was of" but little ufe. So David cat of" the (hew. bread, and our Saviour juftified his cbncUitt. Vid, 1 Sam. xxi. 6. Matt. xii. 3 — 4. ture, OF THE PENTATEUCH. 6*7 turc, figurative of future particulars, they have pal- led away on the accomplishment of thofe things, of which they were the Shadows [mJ ; ritual obferv- ancesare now unprofitable as fpiritual J ighteoufuefs is introduced [x], and the Levitical priefthood be- ing changed, its appendent laws are changed alfo [o]. Tlie end of the ceremonial laws is fulfilled, and thev remain only as the picture of a well con- certed feheme ; the prophetic teitimonies that 1 up- port a more fpiritual covenant. The judicial laws, alfo, as far as they refpecled the Ifraelites as a civil fociety, and were contrived with regard to the peculiar and appropriatecondition of that people ; as far as they were fuited to the ex- igencies of a time, and deviled with a view to the accomplishment of certain purpoies now effected, are no longer binding, as pofitive laws on us. Chkist did not indeed formally, and in exprefs terms, repeal any part of the Mofaic law ; but, whatever was accomplished, did neceflarily expire. The Apoftles, it is true, though they regarded the ceremonial law as a bondage from which they were freed [p], ftill continued to obferve feme of its pre- cepts. This, however, was by no means as a necef- lary fervice, but in compliance with the prejudices [>;] Coloff. ii. 17. [n] Rom. vii. 6. Heb. vii. tS, 19, i Peter ii. 5". Earnab. Epift. [o] Heb. vii. 12. [f] Ads xxi, 21—27. 1 Cor. ix, 20. Gal. iv, v. I— $. F2 ♦ of 68 OF THE PENTATEUCH. of the profelyte Jews [q]. As the force of educa- tion and long habit could not be immediately coun- teracted, the Jews were fuffered to continue in the observance of thofe ritual precepts, which, if now obfolete, were at lealt harmlefs, while they were not fet-up in opposition to the pretenfions of the gofpel covenant The Apoftles, likewife, living under a govern- ment which was founded on the Motaic eftablihV ment, and which had the judicial laws incorporated into the very frame of its constitution, could not, without violating the duties of good citizens, and without offending againft the authority of the civil magiftrate, refute to be fubiervient to the regulations of that polity ; they muft have perceived, however, that as far as the civil were interwoven with the re- ligious inftitutions, they mould give way to evan- gelical appointments. They muft have underftood, that as the diftinctions between Jew and Gentile were now to ceafe, the whole of that oeconomy which was contrived to keep thelfraelites a Separate people, was ufelefs and inconiiftent with the deiign Kof chriftianity. Yet as they knew that it wag only [q] Afts xvi. 3. St. Paul circuracifed Timothcus, " be- caufe of the Jews which were in thofe quarters." In a coun- cil nrevioufly held, the Apoftles deliberated, indeed, concerning the neceffity of circumcifion ; but they certainly underftood, that with rcfpecl to the Gentiles at leaft, there could be no obligation (to obfcrve the law, as far as it was of a temporary and local na- ture. They appear to have aflembled only to ratify by an una- nimous decifion, the fentiments of Paul and Barnabas. \ id. Acls xv, 1 — 29. by OF THE PENTATEUCH. 6*9 by the gradual operation of the Chriftian fpirit, that the Jews could be weaned from a long eftablifhed obedience to the law, and that in fact, till the con- stitution of their country mould be changed or dif- folyedj iuch obedience was in lbme degree neceifary ; the apoitles only then reprobated the advocates for the observance of the Mofaic law, when they fought to enforce it as generally neceflary, and as a means of juftification [it] : they taught that falvation was to be obtained without the law [s], and exprefsly exempted the Gentile converts from theneceflity of refpe&ing any precepts but thole which were en- tirely moral, or partook of a moral character [t]. As to the moral laws, whether thofe contained in the Decalogue, or thofe occaiionally interfperled through the judicial and ceremonial code, it is evi- dent that thefe, as having in themfelves an intriniic excellence and univerfal propriety, and as founded on thofe relations which eternally fubfift, as weli [r] Auguft. cont. Fauft. Lib. XIX. cap. 17. Juft. Martyr, Dialog, p. 230. Edit. Thirl. Conftit. Apoftol. Lib. VI. cap. 11, 12 — 20, 21, 22. Rom. x. 5. [s] Acts xiii. 39. Rom. iii. 28. ix, 32. Gal. ii. 16. [t] Acts xv. 10, 11. This declaration was firft made in fa- vour of the Gentile nations. Vid. Acts xv. 19, who had neither prejudices nor civil regulations to control them ; but the Gofpel liberty was to extend equally to the Jews, when they mould be releafed from the influence of habit, and the injunctions of civil authority. Rom. vii. 4. viii. 15. Indeed, after the dtftruAion of Jerufalem, meft of the Hebrew converts to Chriftianity re- nounced the Mofaic law without hefitation : a part only adhered to it, as the Nazarencs, Ebionites, &c. Vide Mofheim.de Rebus Chrift. Ant. Conftant. Ssc. ii. fed. 38, note*. F 3 with 70 OF THE PENTATEUCH. with reference to our dependance on God, as be- tween man and man reciprocally, muft remain in perpetual force ; for the Mofaic law was annihilated, only lb far as it was of a figurative and temporary character. The ten Commandments which were firft giwn, as containing the primary principles of all law, were douhtlefs introduced with fuch majefty and iblem- nity, that they might retain an everlafting and irre- verlibie authority, which no time mould alter, no change of circumitance annul or invalidate ; they were uttered by the voice of God, before the whole multitude of Ifrael; were written twice by God's own finger [u] ; and are obvioufly diftinguifhcd from the other laws, which were given to Moles only, which were written by him, and which were moulded in conformity to the peculiar condition and circumftances of the Ifraelites. Moles likewife, (as has been obferved by {looker [x],) evidently dif- erimiaates the moral from the ceremonial laws, for in his recapitulation of the law, in the book of Deu- teronomy, he fays, " the Lord fpake unto you out of the niidit of the fire, ye heard the voice of the words, but law no fimilitude, only a voice, and he declared unto you his covenant, which he command- ed you to perform, the ten Commandments, and wrote them on two tables of ftone," (durable mo- [u] Exod. xxxi. iS. That is by God's immediate pov/er, and not by the aft of man, Vid. Maimon. More Nevcc.Var. I. cap. 66. [x] Honker's Ecclcf. Polit. Book III. p. 146. numents OF THE PENTATEUCH. 7l nmnents to intimate their unperilhable authority) " and the Lord commanded me at the fume time to teach you the ftatutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to pofiefs it [y]." Thefe laws then, given for the advantage of all mankind, founded on principles of invariable and univerfal propriety [z], and ftamped with the two great characters of Christian excellence, gratitude to God, and love to man, are properly infcribed on evcrlafting tablets, in the Chnttian church, and muft be obferved as long as any reverence for the deity mail exiit. The other moral laws, which are intermixed with the ceremonial and judicial precepts, and which have entirely a general character [a], may be confidered [y] Deut. iv. io — 14. v. [z] The morality of the fourth Commandment, and its per- petual force, (though with a change as to the day) has been confidered as unquestionable as that of any other part of the De- calogue. [a] Of thefe there are many. Vid. Exod. xxi. 19, 20, 22. xxii. 1, 4, 5, 6, 1©, ii — 16, 19, 20 — 22, 26 — 2S. xxiii. 1 — 9, 12. Levit. xvii. 7. xix. 9, 10, 14, 17, 18. 29, 35, 36, xx. 9, 10, 17. xxiii. 22. xxiv. 18. Numb. xxx. 2. Deut. i. 16, 17. xiv. 29. xv. 7, 8, 11. xvii. 6. xxii. 1 — 3, 14 — 21. xxv. 14, 15. It may be deemed fuperfluous to contend for thefe, as the fame principles are inculcated in the Decalogue, but every in- junction which illuflrates the moral duties, and dilates moral precepts, is important. The law and the prophets are not cfe- lefs, though we poffefs the " two Commandments on which they hang," nor is the decalogue fuperfluous, fince the gofpel hath furnifhed a more perfect rule, and declared, that all the .law is fulfilled in one word. Matt. xxii. 40. Gal. v. 14. Befides, the dignity of tie Mofaic law is affected by this cordi- deration. F 4 as 72 OF THE PENTATEUCH. as corollaries from, or commentaries on, the Deca- logue. Theie, though blended with others of a local and temporary nature, and fcattcred through a collection iuperieded, and virtually repealed, have, as a revelation of the divine will, which is ever uni- form in the lame circumftances, as well as from their intrinfic character, a claim to perpetual obfervance, as much as thole of the Decalogue. They were de- livered it is true with lefs awful circumftances than were the ten Commandments, which fummed up in a compendious form the whole excellence of the moral law; but the other laws had not the lefs au- thority, becaufe delivered by the mediation of Moles, at the particular requelt of the people, who trembled at the voice of God [b] ; and no argument againft the perpetuity of thefe fecondary laws can be drawn from the direction added, (chiefly for the fake of thole that were of a local and temporary nature) to oblerve them in the land of Judaea ; fince thole of the two tables, though indifputably of univerfal obli- gation, were delivered with a fimilar application, as appears from the fanction annexed to the fifth Com- mandment [c]. Xo part of the law, as far as it is [b] Exod. xx. 19. [c] This annexed motive of temporal reward, as well as the exordium prefixed to the firft Commandment, and the comme- moration added to the fourth, in Deut. v. 1 c, have an appropriate application when addrefied to the Jews, which, however, by no means affects the univerfality and perpetuity of the Decalogue; and if the direction which accompanied the other laws be conceived to reftricl. their obfervance to the land of Canaan, it can apply only to thofe of a local and temporary nature, fince the others might, with equal reafon, be obferved elfewhere. ftriaiy OF THE PENTATEUCH, 73 Jtrictly moral is abrogated by the gofpel, any more than are the commandments of the Decalogue. The old difpcnfation is declared invalid only as a covenant of falvation, and it is evacuated in Chrilt only as far as it is accomplished. Chrilt came not to deftroy, but to fulfil the law [d], and its moral defign is it i 11 unaccomplished, and muft lb continue till the end of time, for " till heaven and earth pais away, one jot or one tittle fhall in no wife pais from the law, till all be fulfilled [e]." Our Saviour adds, ftill fpeaking of the law under one general coniideration, " whoib- ever ihall break one of thefe leait Commandments, and fhall teach men fo, he lhall be called leait in the kingdom of Heaven : but Avhofoever ihall do and teach them, the fame ihall be called great in the kingdom of Heaven ;" and he elfewhere annexes the promife of life to the observance of the moral law(YJ. The apoitles were fofar from confidering as aboliihed any part of the Mofaic law, which had a moral cha- racter, that they exprefsly ratified and enjoined asne- eefiary, injunctions not contained in the Decalogue, but which had only a moral tendency [g]. It follows then [d] Matt. v. 17. [e] Matt. v. 18. Luke xvi. 17. [f] Matt. v. 19. x. 27, 28. [g] Acts xv. The Apoftles in the firft council held at Je- rufalem, after having pronounced the ceremonial law to be bvirthenfome and unneceiTary, enjoined to the Gentiles, in the name of " the Holy Ghoft," an obfervance of the Mcfaie law, where it had a general character and moral tendency, and in the very terms, as well as in the fpirit, of the Mofai law, (confidered diliinitly from the Decalogue) they prefcribed unto 74 0E THE FENTATEUCH. then from thefe considerations, that though the law be abrogated, as a covenant infufticient and prepara- tory [h], though its ceremonies have vaniihed as the veil and covering of Spiritual things, and its ju- dicial inftitutious are diifolved with the ceconomy of the Hebrew government, its moral pillars remain un- fliaken. The law then is aboliihed only fo far as fulfilled and fuperfeded by a more excellent difpenfa- tion. As its precepts prefigured this, they have ter- imto the Gentiles " as neceffary things," that they mould ab- irain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things Strangled, and from fornication ; inafmuch as thefe were defcriptive of a difpofition to idolatrj', and adopted in oppo- fition to the fervice of God. St. James concludes his advice, by intimating, that thefe instructions were permanent precepts of the iaw of Mofes, which was " read in every city." Vid. Acts xv. i, 7, 10, ii, 19, 20, 21, 24, 28, 29. St. Paul, in his epiftles, afferts the abrogation of the law, only as fet up in opposition to the gofpel, to which it was n a fchool-mafter" for pedagogue). In comparifon of which it was " elementary and beggarly ;" but in reference to which, and in its moral and fpiritual character, it was " holy, juft, and good.'' Vid. Rom. iii. 20, 24, 28, 31. viii. 4. Gal. iii. 24. iv. 9. 1 Tim. i. 8 — 10. v. 18. 1 Cor. ix. 9, 10. where a Mofaic precept not in the Decalogue is faid to be fpoken " altogether for our fakes." Vid. Dent. xxv. 4. In this, as in other in- stances, where a moral import is couched under a figurative precept, we may fay with St. Ambrofe, " evacuatur in Chrifto, non vetus Teftamentum, fed velamen ejus." Epift. 76. Deut. xxii. 10. Rom. vii. 14. See, laftly, xxiii. 56. where St. Paul admits the authority of a general precept, delivered in Exod. xxii. 28. [h] We are freed alfo from the curfes of the law, " the miniitration of death." Vid. Gal. iii. 13. 2 Cor. iii. 7. but not from its direftive power. minated ; 0 F Til E f t N T A T KLCH. 75 initiated; as its appointments prepared for this, th< ; were exclulively confined to the Hebrew nation; as its commandments correfpond with the moral doligns of the goi'pel, they are incorporated with, and fhould be obferved under, the Chriftiau cove- nant. The Mofaic difpenfation, inafmuch as it was re- stricted to one nation, and contrived to effect its pur- pole, by partial regulations, cannot be fuppofed to have been productive of that liberal and difrufive benevolence which characterizes the gofpel; which is a covenant deiigned to embrace all nations, and to promote univerfal love. But though the peculiar privileges, which the firit covenant conferred on the Israelites, led them to entertain an arrogant and un- rcafonable conceit, it is certain that the ]\iofaic law recommended throughout as much benevolence as was confiitent with that diftinftion, which it was in- tended to promote. The principles on which it is framed, may be always adopted with advantage, iince it breathes throughout a fine fpirit of moral equity; of merciful regard to itrangers, and credi- tors, and bondfmen [i], and even to the brute cre- ation [k] ; and tends, by its literal and figurative precepts [l], to awaken benevolence and charitable difpolitions. The live books of Mates furniih us with a com- pendious hiitory of the world, from the creation to [i] Exod. >'xi. 20, 21, 26, 27. Levit. xix. xxv. Deut. v. 14, 15. XV. [k] Exod. xxiii. 12. Deut. y. 14. xxii. 6, 7. [l] Deut. xxii. 10, xxv. 4, the 9 76 Or THE PENTATEUCH. the arrival of the Ifraelites, at the verge of Canaan, a period of above 22.50 years. It is a wide deicrip- tion, gradually contracted; an account of one nation, preceded by a general {ketch of the firit ftate of mankind. The books are written in pure Hebrew, with an admirable diveriity of ityle, always well adapted to the fu eject, yet characlerifed with the ftamp of the fame author ; they are all evidently parts of the fame work, and mutually ftrengthen and illuitrate each other. They blend revelation and hiftory in one point of view, fufnifh laws, and defcribe their execution, exhibit prophecies, and relate their accomplifhment. Besides the Pentateuch, Moles is faid to have compofed many of the Pfalms, and fome have, though improperly, attributed to him all thole be- tween the 90th and the 100th inclufive. He ap- pears, however, to have been the firft writer who was infpired in the productions of facred hymns, and thole contained in the xvth chapter of Exodus, and the xxxiid of Deuteronomy, furnifh very beau- tiful models of his enraptured poetry. The book of Job has been with fome probability fuppofed to have been written or tranllated by Moles, and many apocryphal works have been afcribed to him, by writers deiirous of recommending their works under the fanction of his name. Cedrenus transferred into his hiftory, a book, which palled under the name of Moles, ftyled Little Genelis [m], and which con- tained many fpurious particulars. It was extant in [m] AtTtliyiiioi:. Hebrew OF THE PENTATEUCH. 77 Hebrew in the time of St. Jerom, and cited by him, but condemned as apocryphal, by the council of Trent. Others attribute to him an apocalypfe, from which they pretend, that St Paul copied in ver. 15 of ch. vi. to the Galatians ; but thefe, as well as thole entitled the afcenfion, and the alTumption of Moles, and fomc mylterious books, were probably fabricated by the Sethians or Sethedians, an ancient feci: of Gnoltic heretics, \v;ho pretended to be derived from Seth, and to poffels feveral books of the Pa- triarchs [xl. [m] A than. Synop. OP [ 78 ] OF THE BOOK of GENESIS. r| ^11 IS, which is the firft book in order of the -*~ Pentateuch, is called Berefchith in thole He- brew copies, which adopt the diviiion of the Penta- teuch into five books [a]. This word iignities the beginning, and was cholen for the title, in confor- mity to the Hebrew cuitom of denominating the fa- cred books from their initial words refpectively. The book, however, is ufually entitled Genefis, from a Greek word [is] which imports generation. It was written by Mofes, as the concurrent teftimonies of all ages declare [c], as ibme fuppofe, in the land of Mi- [a] Some private copies only are divided, thofe ufed in the jewifh fynagogues are not. [bJ Teiea-tc. Generation, production. It is remarkable that the New Teftament begins with the Tame word BibAo; ystiAus \r,aa. [c] Du Pin. Difl". Prel. Sect, I. Huet. The mention which is made in chap. xii. 6. and xiii. 7. of the Canaanites and Perizzites being then in the land, does not prove that the palTages were written after the expulfion ol thefe nations ; nor does the expref- fionof." before there reigned any king in Ifrael," ncceflarily imply, that there were kings when the book was written. The account of the kings of Edom, which correfponds with that in the Book of Chronicles, was probably afterwards inferted by fome prophet, or authorifed perfon, dian, OF THE BOOK OF GENESISj 79 than, where Mofcs fed the flocks of bis father-in-law, in the wildernefs, with defign, it is faid, to comfort the Hebrews in their fervitude, by the example of con- stancy in their fathers, and by a difplay of the oracles and promifes of God ; as particularly in that remark- able revelation to Abraham, that " his i'eed mould be a ftranser in a land not theirs, and mould ferve them, and be afflicted 400 years, and that God ihould judge that nation whom they Ihould ferve, and after- wards they fhould come out with great fubftance [d]."' Eufebius [e] intimates his refpect for tliis opinion, but Theodoret [f] and others luppole tliat the book was written in the wildernefs after the pro- mulgation of the law, and a third hypothecs has been offered from the .Rabbi Moles lien Xachman, that God dictated to Moles all the contents of the l]ook during the forty days that he was permit- ted to have a communication with the deity on Mount Sinai, and that at his defcent, he committed the whole to writing. It is, however, as impoffible, as it is of little confequence, to determine which of thefe opinions is belt founded, and it is fufficient for us to know, that Moles was affifted by the l'pirit of infallible truth, in the composition of this facred [d] Gen. xv. 13, 14. From the birth of Ifaac to the de- liverance from Egypt were 405 years. The 430 years men- tioned in Exodus xii. 40. include the twenty. five years of Abraham's fojourning in Canaan, before the birth of Ifaac. Vid. Patrick in loc. [e] Eufeb. Pra?p. Evan. Lib. II. cap. 7. [f J Theod. Qua?ft. in Gen. Ven, Bede, Sec. work, 80 OF THE BOOK OF GEXESIS. work [gJ which he deemed a proper introduction to the laws and judgments delivered in the iubie- quent books. The defcription which Mofes fnrniihes in this book, conceiTiing the creation, as relating to cir- cumftances previous to the exiftence of mankind, could be derived only from immediate revelation f h]. It was received by the Jews with fail convic- tion of its truth, on the authority of that infpiration, under which Mofes was known to act. But when the book was firit delivered, many perfons then liv- ing muft have been competent to decide on the fidelity with which he relates thole events, which were fubfequent to the creation; they muft have heard of, or difbelieved the remarkable incidents in the lives of the Patriarchs, the prophecies which they uttered, and the actions which they perform- ed ; for the longevity of man in the earlier ages of the world, rendered tradition the criterion of truth ; and in the days of Mofes, the channels of informa- tions muft have been as yet uncorrupted ; for though ages had already elapfed, even 2432 years before the birth of the facred hiftorian, yet thole relations were eafily afcertained, which might have been con- veved by feven perfons from Adam to Mofes, and that the traditions were fo fecure from error, we fhali immediately be convinced, when we confider that Methufalem was 340 years old when Adam died, and that he lived till the year of the flood, [g] Rom. iv. 3. Gal. iii. 8. jam, ii. 23. [h] Origen Homil. 26 in Numer. when of the Book of genesis. 81 when Noah had attained 600 years [i]. In like manner Shem conveyed tradition from Noah to Abraham, for he converfed with both a confiderable time. Ifaac alfo, the ion of Abraham, lived to in- ftruel: Jofeph in the hiitory of his predecelTors, and Aniram, the father of Moles, was contemporary with Jofeph [k]. The Iiraelites then muft have been able, by interefting tradition, to judge huw far the Molaic account was confiftent with truth [l]. If the memory of man reached beyond the period aifigned to the creation, they muft have dilbelieved the Mofaic hiftory; but if through fo fmall a number of immediate predeceflbrs, they could trace up the origin of mankind to Adam, we need not wonder at the implicit veneration which ratified the records of the facred hiftorian ; which accepted a revelation, confirmed by every received account, and ftamped by every fanftion of divine authority. The facred [i] Adam died, A. M. 930, 126 years only before the birth of Noah, and therefore mull have been feen by many of Noah's contemporaries. Lamech, the father of Noah, had certainly feen Adam and his children, being born fifty- fix years before Adam's death ; and Noah himfelf might have feen feveral memo- rials exifting, to prove the truth of thole events afterwards re- corded by Mofes, for Noah died only two years before the birth of Abraham ; and Ifaac might have feen Shem and Selah, who converfed with Noah many years. [k] The tradition then was conveyed from Adam, through Methufalah, Noah, Shem, Abraham, Ifaac, Jofeph, and Amram to TVlofes, feven intermediate perfcns. This account of the longevity of mankind, in the firfl ages of the world, is confirmed by Manetho, Berofus, Mochus, Heftasus, &c. [l] Eafeb. Prsp. Evang. Lib. IX, cap. ult* & character 82 OF THE BOOK OF GENESIS. character of the book is eftablhhed alfo by the in- ternal evidence of its infpiration ; by the revealed hiftory of the creation of the world ;-■ by the feveral predictions afterwards fully accomplifhcd; and laftly, by the fuffrage of our Saviour and his apoftles, who have cited from it at leaft twenty-feven pafiages ver- batim in the New Teftament, and thirty-eight ac- cording to the fenfe [m]. Genesis contains the hiftory ©f 2369 years to the death of Jofeph, or thereabouts, if we follow the account of the ages of the Patriarchs, and fuppofe the flood to have happened about 16\56 years after the creation. It is perhaps fcarce worth the trouble to obferve, that fome very futile objections have been made to the period which is affigned by Mofes to the creation, as though it were too recent to be reconciled with fome natural appearances; for it has ever been found, upon accurate investigation, that though the existence of the world, according to the Molaical account, be too fhort [n], to be compati- ble [m] As Rivet has accurately calculated. [nJ The creation of the world began, according to Ufher* on Sunday, October 23 ; before the birth of Chrift 4004 years, if we follow the Hebrew text. The Septuagint verfion places it 5872, and the Samaritan 4700 before the vulgar a:ra. The Septuagint reckons 2262 years before the flood ; the Samaritan only 1307. Vid. Jackfon's Chron. Tab. Aug. Civit. Dei^ Lib. XII. Newton's Hift. of Antidel. World, p. 98. Strau- chiua Brev. Chron. tranflated by Sauh, p. 166, 176, &c. Capel, Chron. Sae. in Appar. Walton. Some place the crea- tion about the time of the vernal equinox, fince Mofes and the facred writers, reckon their firft month Abib from that time* Or THE BOOK OF GENESIS. 85 bl.e with the theories of ibme fanciful men, yet that juft philofophical reaibning has always tended to cor- roborate the afTurance of the received date of the creation. The extended accounts of the Chaldean, Egyptian, Chinefe, and Hindus chronology, which reach far beyond all bounds of probability [o], and the magnified calculations of ibme other nations are now juitly considered as the fictions of national va- nity, or the exaggerations of erroneous computation. They are often in themielves contradictory [p], and utterly inconfiftent with all observations on the ap- pearance of nature; all philofophical enquiry; and the advancement of mankind in arts, fciences, and refinement. Thefe improbable fabrications are deli- vered by authors who lived long after Moles; whofe veracity is impeached in other inftances ; and whofe general accounts are inveloped in fable, and tinctured by credulity. The learned Halley has obierved, time. Vid. Virgil. Georg. II. 1. 336. & feq. but this was in memory of their deliverance in Egypt. The firft month in civil calculations was the firft after the autumnal equinox ; this was called Tifri, and anfwers to part of our September. [o] The Babylonians reckoned up 33,000 years ; the ChaL deans in the time of Cicero talked of 4.7,000 ; and Manetho, jealous for the reputation of his country, carried back his chro- nological accounts to 36,525 years. Vid. Cicer. de Divin. Lib. I. Bryant's Mythol. vol. 3. Petav. &c. Maurice's Hiftory of Hiiidoftan. [p] Manetho profefles to have tranferibed his Dynafties from foine pillars of Hermes Trifmegiftus. As Sancnoniatho alfo de- rived his theology from Hermes, different accounts muft have been drawn from the fame fource. Vid. Stilling. Grig. Sac. Lib. I. cap. 2. The fountain or the ftreams muft have been corrupt. G 2 that £4 OF THE BOOK OF GEKLSIS. that the oldeft aftronomical obfervations made by the Egyptians, of which we have any account at this day, were later than 300 years before (Thrift [q.] The Chaldaean calculations are unworthy of attention, nnce they contradict the account of the flood, and are quite irreconeileable with the general teftimony of ancient hiftory; and the chimerical ac- counts of the Chinefe, written in hieroglyphics, and reicued imperfectly and with difficulty from detrac- tion, cannot properly be produced in fupport of any theory, repugnant to more authentic chronicles [r], much lefs can they be fuffercd to invalidate the chro- nology of the Scriptures. The incredible and con- [o] Sanchoniatho, the Phoenician Hiftorian, according to the moft extended accounts of Porphyry, flourifhed long after Mofes, probably not lefs than two centuries. Manetho and Berofus lived not more than 300 years before Chrift. Vid. Bochart. Geogr. Sac. Part 2. Lib. II. cap. 17. ]of. Scalrg. Not. in Eufeb. Chron. p. 12. Prsep. Evang. Lib. I. cap. 9. Lib. X". cap. 9. Scalig. Can. Ifag. Lib. III. Stilling. Orig. Sac. Eook I. ch. ii. feft. 4. Diod. Eib. Lib. I. Lad. de Orig. Error. Lib. II. cap. 12. VofT. de Idol. Lib. I. cap. 28. Wooton's Reflect, on Ant. and Mod. Learning, and Stackhoufe's Hill, of Eible, Book I. ch. 5. [r] One of the Chinefe Emperors, about 2 15 years before Chrift, ordered all their hiftorical records to be deftroyed. The Chinefe have not any work in an intelligible character, above 2200 yeaTs old; Father Amiot confiders their nation as a colony, derived from the immediate defcendants of Noah, and their traditional knowledge, and religious doctrines, when freed from ignorance and fuperftitious additions, exhibit a cOsrefpondence with the Patriarchal principles. Vid. Martini. P. 2, 3, 9. Mem. de 1'Hift, des Sciences, &c. Chinois, Vol. I. Par. 1776. tradiciory OF THE BOOK OF GEXESIS. S5 iradi&ory accounts which thele [s] nations furniih, appear to have been fvvelled to ib great a magnitude, by varying the modes of calculation, by ieparating contemporary events, and by fubftituting lunar for i'olar periods. They are -the mifreprefentations of pride, <>r the errors of inattention, and unworthy to be put in competition with the accuracy and •documents of revealed information [t]. Every fs] The Greeks could produce no dates beyond 550 years be- fore Chrift, and little hiftorical information before the olympiads, which began 775 years before Chrift. Herodotus, who flourifhed lefs than five centuries before our Saviour, begins with fable; Thucydides reje&s, as uncertain, almoft all that preceded the Peloponnefran war 3 and Plutarch ventured not beyond the time of Thefeus, who lived a little before the miniftry of Samuel. Vid. Plutarch's Life of Thefeus. Strabo's Geograph. Lib. XVH. [t] Some difficulties, equally futile and unreafonable, have likewife been -darted againft the probability of that account, which derives the whole race of mankind from one common ftock, notwithftanding the diverfity of complexion, and the feparation of country; but actual obfervation hath afcertained that climate and local circumftances are fufficient to account for every diffimi- larity, which is difcovered in the appearance of different nations. The fuppofed difficulties of emigration are likewife obviated by recent difcoveries in geography : for thefe demonftrate a much greater proximity in countries, between which no communica- tion was conceived to exift in the earlier ages of the world, than obtains between thofe from which early emigrations have con- fefledly been made, and thofe to which they have been directed. It is now determined, by pofitive examination, that the north- eaft part of Afia is either connected with the north-weft part of America, or feparated from it by a very inconfiderable diftance ; though, indeed, this difcovery was not neceflary to prove that the favage nations of the weftern continent muft have derived G 3 their S6 OF THE BOCIC 0? GENESIS. Every circumftance, indeed, in the Mofaic ac- count, bears, if impartially confidered, a ftriking feature of probability and truth ; and the whole is far different from the wild and inconiiftent theories, which have at different times been imagined and framed by fanciful men [u] ; whole crude and ex- travagant conjectures concerning the creation, only prove the impoffibility of treating fuch afubject with- their origin from the fame common fource as the eaftern nations ; lince not to infift on the arguments for the recency of their efta. blifhment, which might be drawn from their uncivilized ftate, and their rude ignorance of the ufeful arts, they retained the veftiges of opinions and cuftoms, which were fo remarkably fimilar to thofe that prevailed in the eaft, as evidently to point out a former connection : a reverence for the Sabbath, and an acquaintance with many appointments of the Mofaic institution, were obferved to exift in America, by the firft difcoverers of that country, too numerous indeed to be the refult of accident or cafual refemblance ; all the Americans had fome traditionary acquaintance with the particulars of the Mofaic hiflory ; as of the flood ; of one family preferved ; and of the confufion of tongues. The Mexicans had a cuftom of tinging the threfhold of the door with blood, poffibly in allufion to the circumftances that diftin- guifhed the inititution of the Paflbver, and the Canadians had ever, fome idea of the Meffiah. Huet. Demon. Evang. cap. vii. feet. 3. Lerii Navig. in Brafil. cap. 16. Joann. de Lact. Antwerp. Not. ad Diflert. Grot, de Orig. Gent. American. Acofta's Hift. Lib. V. cap. 28. Peter Mart. Decad iv. cap. 8. and Decad viii. cap. 9. Geor. Horn, de Orig. Gent. American. Harris's Introd. to Col- lect. Voyage. Smith's Effay on the Caufes of Variety of Com. plexion and Figure in the Human Species. Herod. 1. iv. c. 64. Sir William Jones's Difcourfe on Origin and Families' of Nations, Aflatic Refearches, vol. iii. [u] Cunworth's Intel. Syftem, and Cofmog. Pref. to Univ. Hiit. Clarke's Demcnft. of Being and Attributes of God. out OF THE BOOK OF OEXESIS. 37 out the aid of infpiration. Mofes defcribes the great Work of the creation, not in an exact philosophi- cal detail, but in a Style adapted to popular appre- hensions, and with a coneife magnificence, defigned to imprels mankind wlthjuft notions of God, and of his attributes [x]. * The account is given without any attempt to eitablifli lyftem, and in a manner levelled to all capacities, though univerfally admired for its Sublimity. It represents the whole world to be material and created, in oppofition to the prevailing notion, that the heavenly bodies were animated by an eternal power [y]. The divine agency is repre- sented under images and descriptions accommodated to human conceptions, and though the real mode of God* operation and proceedings cannot be appre- hended by us at prefent, they are in fome meamre ■Subjected to our understanding, under analogous representations, which illuftrate their character. But notwithstanding tlie nature of God's agency is adumbrated under terms and exprefiions adapted to hjiman actions, the account of the creation is not to be considered as allegorical, or merely figurative, any ifiore than the hiltory of the temptation, and of the fall from innocence ; Since the whole defcription £x] Some think that the world was inftantaneoufly created, though repr.efented by Mofes, as performed in fucceffion of time, in accommodation to our conceptions, but it is more reafonable zrd confiftent with the account to believe that it was completed in detail. Mofes fpeaks of the creation of the univerfe, but treats of the heavenly bodies only fo far as they refpefted the earth. £y] Longin. de Sublim. feet. 9. G 4 is 88 OP THE BOOK OF GENESIS. is unqueftionably delivered as real, and is fo con- fidered by all the facred writers [z]. In the expla- nation offcripture, indeed, no interpretation which tends to fuperiede the literal fenfe mould be admit- ted : and for this reafon alio it is, that thofe fpecu- lations which are fpun out with a view to render particular relations in this book more confiftent with our ideas of probability, mould be received at lealt with great diffidence and caution. To represent the formation of the woman from Adam's rib, as a work perforated in an imaginary lenfe, or as pictured to the mind in vilion, feems to be too great a departure from the plain rules which ihould be obferved in the conltruclion of fcripture [a], and inconfiltent with the expofitions of the facred writers. So Hkewife the wreftling of Jacob with an angel [b], though fometimes confidered as a fcenical reprefentation addrefTed to the fancy of the Patriarch, mould rather be contemplated like the temptation of Abraham [c], as [z] John viii. 44. 2 Cor. xi. 3. 1 Tim. ii. 13. Rev. xii. 9. Allix's Reflect, on Gen. Waterland's Gen.Pref. to Script. Vind. Watty's Effay towards Vindic. of Mofaic Hift. Nichols's Confer, with a Theift. Part I. p. 136. Bochart de Scrip. Tentat. p. 836. [a] Gen. i. 22, 23. This is related by Mofes as a real ope- ration, though performed while Adam was in a deep fleep, and is fo confidered by the facred writers. 1 Cor. xi. 8, 9. [b] Ch. xxxii. 24, 25. £c] Ch. xxii. The enjoined facrifice of Ifaac is properly con- fidered as a typical reprefentation, which was underftood by Abraham to prefigure the facrifice of Chrift. Vid. John viii. 56. But it cannot be admitted, that the command was merely an in- formation by action given at the requeft. of Abraham, as this, not- withftanding OF THE BOOK OF GENESIS. 89 as a literal tranfaction, though perhaps of a figurative character ; like that, it was defigned to convey in- formation by action inftead of words, of certain par- ticulars which it imported the Patriarch to know [d]; and which he readily collected from a mode of re- velation, fo cuftomary in the earlier ages of the world, however it may feem incongruous to thofe who cannot raife their minds to the contemplation of any ceconomy which they have not experienced, and who proudly queftion every event not confiftent with their notions of propriety. After having related the difobedience of Adam, and its punifhment, foftened by the gracious promile of a future feed, that mould bruife the feducer to fm [e], Mofes defcribes the multiplication of man- withftanding the arguments of the Learned Warburton, muft be confidered as inconliftent with the paffages in fcripture, where Godisfaid to have tempted Abraham. Gen. xxii. i. Heb. xi. 17. Vide Div. Legat. Book VI. feci. c. [d] Ch. xxxii. 24, 25. The fuccefsful ftruggle which Jacob maintained, was intended to convey to him an aflurance of that deliverance from the hand of Efau, which he had pioufly intreated ; it is reprefented as an actual event by Mofes, and is fo received by Hofea, ch. xii. 4. St. Jerom understands it as figurative of fpiri- lual conflicts which we are to maintain. Hieron. in cap. 6. JEpift. ad Ephef. [e] Gen. iii. 15. It is remarkable that in this firft prophecy of the Mefliah, he is promifed as the " feed of the woman." The Jews were at a lofs to account for the reitriction, of which the reafon is revealed to us in the account of the miraculous con- ception of Chrift by a virgin. It deferves to be noticed, that the jbruifmg of the Mefliah's heel was literally accomplifhed by the crucifixion. The head likewife of the ferpent is faid to be the feat of life, his heart being under the throat, and hence, his chief care, when attacked, is to fecure his head. kind, 30 OF THE BOOK OF GENESIS. kind, and the evil confequences of the entailed cor- ruption; the intermixture of the descendants of Seth, " the fons of God/' with the family of Cain, " the daughters of men ;" the progrefs of impiety, and its punifhment ; the prefervation of Noah, and of his family, from amidft the general destruction by the flood ; he proceeds to treat of God's covenant with man ; of the diSperfion of the defcendants of Noah ; of the confufion of tongues ; of the cove- nant made with Abraham ; of the deftruclion of Sodom and Gomorrah ; and of fuch particulars in the lives of the Patriarchs, as were beft calculated to illuftrate the proceedings and judgments of God, the confequences of human actions, and the rife and progrefs of religion ; and he conclude? with the interefting ftory of Jofeph, and of the fet- tlement of the Israelites in Egypt. Thus have we a clear, though ihort, hiftory of the firft ages of the world, which prophane writers had vainly en- deavoured to refcue from the ihades of antiquity. The whole is related with a concife and noble Snn- plicity of Style fuitable to the dignity of the Subject The facred writer, anxious only to furniili impor- tant intelligence, defcribes the earlier periods with rapidity, and dilates more copioufly on the intereft- ing transactions of which the effects and influence were recently experienced. In the hafty iketch, however, even of the SirSt ages, MoSes by the Se- lection of individual families for consideration, de- lineates a Striking picture of the manners of each period ; and by occafjonally dcScendingto the minutc- riefs of biograph)7, affords a lively illuStration of the final lev OF THE BOOK OF GENESIS. ()\ fmaller features, and familiar manners of the Patri- archal ages. In the courfe of his hiftory, Mofes defcribes events as they occurred, and characters as they appeared. The aclions of the patriarchs and favourite anceftors of the Jews, however exceptionable, and even the deceitful cruelty of Levi, (from whom the hiftorian was deicended. ) as alio the curies denounced againlt him [f], are related without dil'guife. One circum- ftance muft, however, be remembered by thole who would underitand the fcope and defign of the facred writer, in furniihing us with particular relations con- tained in this book, which is, that he always kept in mind the promife of the Median ; and was defirous of fhewing, that the expectation of this great objccx of the Jewiili hopes was predominant in all times, and influenced the opinions and manners of every generation. The recollection of this will furnilli the realbn of many particulars mentioned in the book, which might otherwiie appear extraordinary and ex- ceptionable. It will explain the conduct of Lot's daughters [g] ; the violent defire of Sarah for a [f] Ch. xxxiv. 13 — 25. xlix. 5, 6. [c] R. Samuel and R. Tanchumah, on Gen. xix. 52. Thi; inceft certainly proceeded from a defire of producing the Meffiah : as Lot's daughters were previoufly diftinguifhed for chaftity ; as it was a concerted and deliberate proceeding ; and as they wilhed to perpetuate the memory of the action, by the names which they gave the children ; for Moab implies born of my father, and Ben.ammi has a £nular import, Vid. AUis's Reflect, on Gen. ion; 93 OF THE BOOK OF GENESIS. fon ; the folicitude of Ifaac to remove the barren- nefs of Rebekah ; and the contention between the wives of Jacob. In conformity with this defign alfo Moles relates the jealoufies between Ifhmael and Ifaac ; and between Efau and Jacob ; and many other minute and fingular particulars, which an hiitorian of his dignity would not have condefcended to defcribe, but with a view to illuftrate the general perfualion of, and gradual preparation for, the co min<: of the Meffiah. " The book contains likewife fome fignal and dire6l prophecies concerning Chrift [h] ; and other inter- fperfed predictions ; . which by their accomplifhment authenticate the truth of the fcripture accounts. Mo- les defcribes, alfo, the predictions of other perfons, who were occafionally enlightened by the Holy Spirit, to unfold parts of the divine ceconomy, and to keep alive the confidence and hopes of mankind, " delivering the prophecies which have been uttered ever fince the world began [i.]," It may be briefly obferved, that many particulars in pagan hiftory, as well as many circumftances in the prefent appearance of the world, both natural and moral, tend to prove the truth of thofe accounts which are furniihcd in this book. Innumerable [h] Gen. iii. 15. xii. 3. xviii. 18. xxi. 12. xxii. 18. xxvi. 4. xxviii. 14. xlix. 10, 18. [1] Gen. vi. 3. ix. 25 — 27. xiii. 15, 16. xv. 5, 13 — 16. xvi. 12. xvii. 8, 20. xviii. 14. xxi. 12, 13. xxv. 23. xxvi. 4. xxvii. 29, 39, 40. xxxv. 11. xl. 13, 18, 19. xli. 29 — 31. xlvi. 4. xlviii. 19. xlix. 3 — 27. 1. 24. traces OF THE EOOK OF GENESIS. Q3 traces of the Mofaic hiftory, and of the events and characters which it defcribes, are difco verable in every page of prophane authors. The ipot on which Sodom andGomorrah ftood, ftill indicates a iulphureous qua- lity [k], and daily veftiges of the deluge point out its extenfive effects. The various manners, cuftoms, and fuperftitions of many ancient nations, unchanged during; a Ions; fucceffion of ages, ftill remain to prove the fidelity and exactnefs of the defcriptions given by Mofes [l] ; and in the predominant genius [k] The Jake Afphaltites is a fea of very bituminous nature ; it throws up great quantities of afphaltos, a drug formerly ufed by the Egyptians and other nations for embalming, &c. Vid. Maundrell. Pocock. Univer. Hift. Vol. II. Book I. ch. vii. p. 418. Keill's Exam, of Reflect, on Theor. p. 14S. Waterland's Pref. to Vind. Jenkins's Reafon. Vol. II. p. C26. alfo Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. I. cap. 9. Plin. Nat. Hift. Lib. V. cap. 16. and Ta- citi Hift. Lib. V. feft. 7. The account of the latter author is remarkable. He relates that the plains where the cities ftood, were faid, " olim uberes, magnifque urbibus habitatos, fulminum jactu arfifle : et manere veftigia, terramque ipfam fpecie torridam, vim frugiferam perdidifTe. Nam cun&a fponte edita, aut manu fata, five herba tenus aut flore, feu folitam in fpeciem adolevere, atra & inania velut in cinerem vanefcunt." He adds, " Ego ficut inclitas quondam urbes igne ccelefti flagrante concefferim, ita halitu lacus infici terram, corrumpi fuperfufum fpiritum, eoque foetus fegetum et autumni putrefcere reor, folo cceloque juxta gravi." Vid. alfo Strabo's Geogr. Lib. XVI. Thevenot's Tra- vels and Volney's Voyage en Syrie, &c. Vol. I. p. 281. Wood's EfTay on Homer, p. 51, note (h). [l] His geographical accounts are confiftent with the moft authentic memorials. Vid. Jofeph. Grotius and Bochart. Har- mer's Obfervations on divers paflages of Script. &c. Huet. Demon. Prop. IV. Avenarius in verbo Jarck- and 9-i OT THE BOOK OF GENESIS. and difpontion of the modern Jews, we witnefs a" •wonderful correfpondence Mith the picture of their ancient character. No length of time, or difference of condition, hath been able to efface thole ftrong features of national peculiarity which are imprinted on this Singular people, and which Ihew themfelves fo remarkably in their prejudices, conduct, and man- ners, in different countries, and under different go- vernments. The re alb n and ground of their observ- ances and ceremonies, are traced out in this book ; and though in the Subsequent parts of the Pentateuch the laws are laid down by which their civil and reli- gious conduct are influenced, yet here chiefly are de- scribed the caufes and fource from which they are de- rived, as may beinftanced in the cafes of theSabbath, and of the Circumcilion [mQ$ not to mention other particulars. Geneiis was, indeed, very properly pre- fixed to thofe books in which Moles communicated the divine commands, iince herein are difplayed the moft impreffive proofs of God"s exiftence and attri- butes, and herein is fhewn the authority from which Moles derived his commiffion as a law-giver; and it was therefore probably written as preparatory to the promulgation of the law [x]. It is likewife excel- lently Serviceable to illustrate the great defign and tendency of revelation; which is ever delivered in a manner conformable to the fallen and depraved na- [m] Allix's Reflections on Genefis, republifhed in Bp. Wat- fon's Theological Tracts. Vid. ch. xxxii. 32. Enfeb. Prsep. Evan. Lib, VII. ch. 9. [n] Eufcb. Praep..Evan. ch. ii. Ifid. Pelufiot. 5 ture OF THE BOOK- OF GENESIS. 9$ ture of man. It defcribes the origin of a diftinct immaterial Spirit, derived immediately from God; and the firft inftitution of the marriage" union.' It points out the true fource of evil, in an account confiftent with the divine attributes, and confirmed by the character and appearance of mankind in every age. Every moral dii'courfe, as every reli- gious fyftem, inuft be built on the foundation and conviction that man was created in innocence, but degraded by fin ; and hence he is fufceptible of good, and prone to evil [o]. On account of the dignity and importance of the fubjecl, and of the feripus attention which it deferved, the Jews were, forbidden to read the beginning of Gen'efis till they had attained the facerdotal age of thirty years. A work, indeed, which defcribes the firft creation and lapfe of man ; which treats of God's counfels and intercourfe with his creatures ; which opens the profpe6l of redemption, and the grand fcheme of prophecy; and exemplifies the high obligations and interefts of man, cannot be confidered with too mature and deliberate judgment. [o] Wolfeley's Reafon of Christian Religion, p. 152, OF [ 96 3 OF THE BOOK o* EXODUS. npHE title of the fecond Book of Mofes is, lifcc- -*- wife, defcriptive of its contents. The word Exodus [a], which is of Greek original, implies emigration ; and the book relates the departure of the Ifraelites out of Egypt, after a previous defcrip- tion of their ftate of fervitude, of the appointment of Mofes, and of the miracles by which he effected their deliverance. It preients us alfo with the ac- count of their journey through the wildernefs ; of the folemn promulgation of the law at mount Sinai* of the delivery of the Decalogue ; and of the build- ing of the Tabernacle. It is univerially allowed to have been written by Mofes ; and the words of Ex- odus are cited as the words of Mofes, by Daniel, David, and other facred writers ; to whom it is ufe- lefs to refer, fince our Saviour himielf always dif- [a] From e£ooo?, a departure, or going out. It is called by the Jews, Ve-elleh Semoth ; that is, " thefe are the names," which are the initial words of the book. tinguifiies OF THE BOOK OF £XODUS. 97 tinguiflies the law (by which the whole Pentateuch is implied) from the prophets, as the work of Moles; and Rivet has obierved, that twenty-five paiTages are quoted by Chrift and his apoftles out of this book in exprefs words, and nineteen as to the fenfe, and this will be found not to be an exaggerated account. Exodus contains an hiftory of about 145 years, or perhaps of a ibmewhatfhortcr period. Many of the circumftances therein recorded are confirmed by the teftimony of heathen writers [b]. This, per- haps, it is unneceflary to mention, for our convic- tion of the truth of its relations is built on much higher evidence. The intrinfic marks of fincerity in the facred writings are ufually too numerous to re- quire any additional fupport. This book contains fome predictions, of which it relates alio the accomplilhment ; as that of the de- liverance of the Jews, which Mofes forefaw [c] and effected. It likewife defcribes fome which were not fulfilled till after his death, as that concerning the conqueft of Canaan [d], and the future divifion and [b] Numenius fpeaks of the opposition of the Egyptian ma- gicians to the miracles of Mofes. The Exodus under Mofes is mentioned by Palemon and Chaeremon ; (as cited by Africanus in Eufebius ; by Manetho ; (vid. Jofeph. cont. Apion, Lib. I.) by Trogus Pompeius ; and by Tacitus, with fome abfurd additions from perverted information. Vid. Tacit. Hift. Lib. V. §. 3, Other writers, as efpecially Orpheus, in the verfes afcribed to him, fpeak of the delivery of the two tablets of the law from God, and of the inftitution of the Hebrew rites. Diodor. Sic« 1. xl. [c] Exodus vii. 4, 5. [d] Chap. xv. 14 — 17. xxiii. 22, 23, 31. xxxiii. ti H allotment $8 OF THE BOO'K OF EXODUS. allotment of the land [e] ; and alio thofe which ref- lated to the revolutions that were to take place hi the government of the Jews: their future iubjcction;3, captivities, deliverances, and returns. It may throw fome light upon this book, as well as contribute to our general admiration of fcrip- ture, if we obferve, that the events recorded to have happened under the old difpenfation are often ftrik- ingly prefigurative of thofe which occur under the new; and that the temporal circumftances of the Ifraelites Teem delignedly to fhadow out the fpirituai condition of the chriftian church. The connection is ever obvious, and points out the confiftency of the divine purpofe, and the harmony deliberately contrived to fubfift between both difpenfations. Thus in the fervitude of Ilrael are defcribed the firfferings of the church. In the deliverance from Egypt is foretliewn its redemption [f] ; and the journey through the wildernefs is a lively reprefentation of a chriftian's pilgrimage through life, to his inheritance in ever- Jafting blifs, So alfo, without too minute a difcuf- iion, it may be oblerved, that the manna of which the Ifraelites did eat [g], and the rock of which [e] Mofes alfo here predicted the conftant miracle TiniBERS. Ill the divine will, . fince it conftitutes part of the Pen- tateuch, which in all ages has been univerfally af- cribed to Moles, and it is cited as his infpired work in various parts of fcripture [c]. The book comprehends a period of about 3S years, reckoning from the firft day of the fecond month after the deliverance from Egypt, during which time the Ifraelitcs continued to wander in the wildcrnefs [b]. Moft of the tranfactions, however, delcribed in this book, happened in the firft and laifc of thefe years. The date of thole events which are recorded in the middle of the book cannot be pre- cilely ascertained. The hiltory prefents us with an account of the confecration of the Tabernacle, and of the offering of the princes at its dedication. It defcribes the journies and encampments of Ifrael under the mi- raculous guidance of the cloud ; the puniiTiment at Taberah ; and the lignal vengeance with which, on ieveral occafions, God refented the diltruftful mur- murs of the people, and that rebellious fpirit which fo often broke out in fedition againft his appointed minifters, particularly in the affair of Korah, which is delcribed with great animation. The prompti- tude and fe verity with which God enforced a refpecl for his laws, even to the exemplary condemnation [c] Jofhua iv. 12. 2 Chron. xxix. n. xxxi. 3. Ezck. xx. 13. xliv. 27. Matt. xii. 5'. John vi. 31. ix. 36. [d] The Ifrael ites were condemned to wander fo long in the wildernefs for their ungrateful murmurs and diftruft in God. Vid. Numb. xiv. 23, 33. But by this fegregation many import- ant purpofcs were accomplifhed. Of 3 U2 OF tHE B06K OB' NUMBERS. of the man who prophaned the fabbath, were necef- fairy, when even a fenfe of the immediate prefence of the Almighty, and a confideration of the miracles daily performed, could not influence to obedience. Amidft tlie terrors, however, of the divine judgments which the book unfolds, we perceive like wile the conti- nuance of God's mercies in providing afiiftance for Mofes by the appointment of the feventy elders j in drawing; water from the rock ; and in the letting- up of the brazen ferpent. The benevolent zeal of Mofes to intercede on all occasions for the people, even when punifhed for ungrateful infurreCtions againft himfelf, deferves likewife to be coniidered< The hiftory is animated with much variety of event; and befides the particulars above alluded to, it contains the account of the resignation and death of Aaron ; of the conqueft of Sihon and Og ; of the conduct of Balaam [e] towards Balak [f] ; of the merited fate of Balaam ; of the inhdious project to [e] Balaam was probably a true prophet, who had been fe- duced by mercenary motives into idolatrous practices, having had recourfe to heathen enchantments, when he could not procure reve-i lations from God. Vid. Numb. xxii. 8. xxiv. I. 2 Pet. ii. 15. He refided at Pethor, a city of Mesopotamia, towards the banks of the Euphrates. Pethor was afterwards called Bozor by the Syrians. Hence in 2 Pet. ii. 15. Bcc^ccx^ tov Boo-o^, " Balaam of the city of Bofor." Vid. Grotius in loc. [f] God's anger appears to have been kindled againft Ba^ laam, as well for his general practice of divination, as for his defire to procure " the wages of unrighteoufnefs," by curfing thofe whom God had bleiTed. Maimonides abfurdly reprefents the fpeaking of Balaam's afs as a circumftance executed only in 2 OF THE BOOK OE.XUMBEUS. I 13 to feduce the Ifraelites ; its Tuccels and effects ; and of the appointment of Jofliua. We perceive in every relation the confiftency of the divine inten- tions, and the propriety of the laws which God eltabliihed. When we contemplate, for initance, the arts and contrivance practifed by idolatrous nations, we cannot wonder at the rigorous com- mands [g] delivered for the extirpation of the in- habitants of Canaan; or that the Almighty mould defne to purge froni pollution a land' to be con- fecrated to his fervice. The book contains like- wile a repetition of many principal laws given for the direction of the Ifraelites, with the addition of feveral precepts, civil and religious. It defcribes lb me regulations eltabliihed for the ordering of the tribes, and for the divifion of the land which the Ifraelites were about to poUefs. It furnifhes us alio with a lift of the tribes ; and with that of Levi in particular, which is referved for a diftincl roll, be- caufe in poiVefnon of an order in the priefthood. With refpect, to the numberings which are made in this book, it muit be oblerved, that the tribes are not reckoned in the order in which their heads were in vifion, though there is no fhadow of reafon why it mould not be confidered as the account of a real event. Objections to miracles • drawn from their difficulty are prepofterous, when a ' d to an omnipotent Being ; and that Mofes fhould not fl.oj t'c defcribe the furprize of Balaam, was as confluent with •, as with the concifenefs, of his hiftory. 2 Pet. ii. ir, and Joifepn. Amiq. Lib. iv. c. 3. Vid. Maim. More Nevcch, Part II. c xliii. fc] Deal, i — 6. xiii. 12 — -ry. xx. 19 — 1 3 = I .:rn, 114 OF THE BOOK OF NUMBERS. born, but in that of their refpective mothers, or ac- cording to their accidental or acquired precedence. 2d. That only thole males who were twenty years old and upwards are reckoned. And 3d. That Ephraim [h] and Manafieh are mentioned as two diftinct tribes ; but for the particular reafons of every arrangement in the order and circumftances of this enumeration, we muft have recourie to the commen- tators at large. From theie an ample folution of the difficulties which occur in confidering the particulars of the numberings may be obtained [i]. The moft fignal prophecies which are contained in this book, and bear teftimony to its infpiration, are thofe bleffings which Balaam [k] was conftrained to utter concerning the future profperity of the If- raelites [l], and the deftrufrion of their feveral enemies [m] ; efpecially in that diitmct. and extatic defcription of the " Star which fhould come out of Jacob, and of the Sceptre that mould rife out [h] In the number of the tribe of Ephraim compared •with that of Manaffeh, we perceive the accomplifhment of Jacob's propheey. Comp. Numb. i. 33 — 35. with Gen. xlviii. 19, 20. Comp. alfo for fimilar illuitration, Numb. i. 21. with Gen. xlix. 3., 4. and Numb. i. 27. with Gen. xlix. 8. [1] Hieron. Com. Parker's Introd. to Numb. Lewis Antiq. Heb. L. VIII. [k] Though God had probably rejected Baham as an apoftare prophet, he deigned to employ him on this fignal occafion as the herald of the divine oracles : to illuftrate the impotency of the heathen arts, and to demonftrate the power and foreknowledge of the divine Spirit. [l] Ch. xxiii. 8 — 10, 23. xxiv. 8. [m] Ch. xxiv. of OF THE BOCK OF NUMBERS. 115 of Iirael [n]." The denunciation likewife againft Moles and Aaron for their difbelief [o], as well as threats againft the people for their murmurs [p], and the declaration, that none but Caleb and Joihua fliould enter the land, was ftrikingly fulfilled ; and it may be added, that the rites of the Paffover, of which the oblervance is again enjoined in this book [q], were figurative reprefentations of a pre- dictive character. [n] Ch. xxiv. 17, ig; The expreflion of fC the Star" might be chofen in allufion to thofe portentous lights which were fuppofed to precede the appearance of illuftrious perfonages ; and it is re- markable, that, as if in exact conformity with Balaam's prophecy, fl a Star in the eaft" indicated the time and place of our Saviour's nativity. Vid. Matt; Ch. ii. [o] Ch. xx. 12. and Patrick in loc. [p] Ch. xiv. 20 — 36. [q] Ch. ix. 12. comp, with John xix. 36. I 2 OF [ H6 ] OF THE BOOK of DEUTERONOMY. THE fifth and laft Book of the Pentateuch is diftinguifhed among the Jews by its^initial word ; though fometimes the Rabbinical writers call it the Book of Reprehenfions ; in allufion to the frequent reproaches which it contains againft the If- raelites. It is alfo denominated Thora, which implies the Law ; as well as Mima, a copy of the Law; a word which correfponds with the title that the feventy have given it, Deuteronomy [a] fignifying a repe- tition of the Law. It contains indeed a compen- dious repetition of the Law; enlarged with many explanatory additions, and enforced by the ftrongeft and molt pathetic exhortations to obedience; as well for the more forcible imprefiion on the Ifraelites in general, as in particular for the benefit of thole who being born in the wilder nefs were not prefent at the iirii promulgation of the Law [b]. It is a kind of manual [a] Froir« hitlers ■;■■'-., a fecond Law. [b] Mofes in his addrefs to the Ifraelites obferves, that " the Lord made not the covenant with their fathers, but with thofe then alive;" for though many who were prefent at Sinai were XJOW OF THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOJlV. 117 manual of divine wifdom; a commentary on the de- calogue ; and contains fuch laws as concerned the people in general, as to their civil, military, and re- ligious government, omitting for the molt part what related to the Prieits and Levites. It was delivered by Mofes, a little time previous to his death; to the people whom he had long governed and inftru&ed; and bequeathed, with his other writings, to the charge of the Levites [c], as the moft valuable teltimony of his regard, in the fortieth year after the departure from Egypt, A. M. 2552. The book opens with an interefting addrels to the Ifraelites, in which Mofes briefly recapitulates the many circumftances in which they had experienced the divine favour fmce their departure from Horeb. He deicribes the fuccefs and victories which had marked their progrefs ; the incredulous murmurs and ingratitude, by which the people had incenfed God; and the effects of the divine wrath; efpecially row dead, many alfo muft have been (till living ; thofe only having perifhed in confequence of God's threats, who were twenty years old and upwards when they offended him by their murmurs ; and even of thofe condemned to die in the wildernefs, many might, like Mofes, be fuffered to behold the land which they were not to enter. Mofes, however, may perhaps mean only, that God made not that folemn covenant with their forefather:-, the patriarchs, but with the generation of his contemporaries. Vid. Numb. xiv. 29. Deut. vj 3. and Calmet and Eilius in loc. [c] Chap. xxxi. 26. The two tables of the decalogue were placed in the ark ; the reft of the law in the fide of the ark. Vid. 1 Kings viii. 9. Patrick in Deut, xxxi. 26. I 3 in 118 OF THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY. in the inexorable decree by which he himfelf had been debarred from that land, for the polTeflion of which he had fo earneitly toiled. He proceeds with the moft animated zeal to exhort them to future obe- dience ; and to rehearfe in a difcourle, renewed at intervals, the various commandments, ftatutes, and judgments, which had been delivered to them by God, that they might become " a wile and under? ftanding nation;" and fulfil the terms of that cove- nant which the Lord had made with them in Horeb. Moles, while he interf perfes with thefe laws frequent reproaches for their pait mifconduct, unfolds the glo- rious attributes of God [d], and reiterates every per- fuafive motive to obedience. He commands them to diftinguifti their firlt entrance to Canaan, by a public difplay of reverence for God's law: by erect- ing ftones on which all its words and precepts might be inicribecj [e]. He enters into a new covenant with the people ; which included not only that pre- vioufly made at Horeb, but which renewed alfo and ratified thofe afTurances of fpiritual bleflings, long fince imparted to Abraham and his defendants [f]. He then, in confiftency with the promiies and lanc- tions of both covenants, fets forth for their election, [d] Chap. xvii. 17, 18. [e] Chap, xxvii. 1 — 5, Mofes exprefsly commands, that f all the words of the Jaw" fhould be written, which cannot mean, as fome have fuppofed, merely the decalogue. [f] Chap. xxix. 12, 13. Bifhop Bull was of opinion, that only the Abrahamic covenant was here renewed ; but it Ihould rather feem, that both this and the covenant of Sinai were re- newed and ratified. Vid. Bull's DirT. Poll. c. xi. " life OF THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY. 119 " life and good, and death and evil :" temporal and eternal recompence, or prefcnt and future punifh- ment [c]. In the preceding books of the Pentateuch, Mofes fpeaks of himfelf in the third peribn, but here in a more animated manner, he drops as it were the cha- racter of an hiftorian, and is introduced as imme* diately addrefling himfelf to his countrymen [h]. Hence it is that in describing what he uttered, lie repeats the decalogue with fome flight change of exprefiion from that which was ufed at its firft deli- very ; a variation which, as it affected not the import of the commandment, might have ferved to indicate, that not the letter, but the fpirit of the law mould be regarded : he likewife introduces fome general alterations in the code that he prefents, which Ihould be confidered as fupplementary additions requifite by a change of time and circumftances ; and he takes occafion to intimate that fpiritual intention of the Jaw, by which it was defigned for the inward govern- ment of man [i]. It mould here be remarked, that the fevere fpirit which pervades the law, as fhewn in the numerous exactions and declaratory curies [k] detailed in ]this book, was confiftently contrived to [g] Maimonides, confcious that the Mofaic promifes of tem- poral reward were figurative of future recompence, gives this traditionary explanation of the fanction in Deut. iv. 40. Ut bene Jit tibi " in faiculo quod totum eft bonam." Et prolonges diesf ft in faeculum quod totum eft longum." [h] Chap. i. 6. ii. 17. iv. 8. ix. 13. x. 3. [1] Chap. x. 16. [kj Chap, xxvii. 1 4- point 120 OF THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY. point out the rigorous character of the divine juftice, which, in a covenant of ftipulated observances, ne- ceffarily required punctilious and universal obedience [l]. For though the divine mercy might compaf- fionate the weaknefs of human nature, and therefore it prefcribed atonements not difficult to be paid; yet God could not, in conformity with his relation to the Ifraelites, overlook even involuntary deficiencies or caiual defilement. A fimilar fpirit of ftern equity appeared as to the civil regulations A iociety; and the law not only iuffered, but required an evacl: retaliation: " Life for life, eye for eye, tooth foe tooth [m].'? A requifition which, while it ttiongly enforced God's abhorrence of injuries could not be abufed under a government, which provided cities of refuge for undenting offenders, and administered its judgments upon principles univerlally known and accepted. The book contains a period of nearly two months : an hiitory of the conclulion of the Life of Moles, - [l] Deut. xxvii. z6. The law rigoroufly enforced the ob- fervar.ee of whatever it enjoined, though fome precepts were framed with fomewhat of lax and indulgent confideration of what the perverfe temper* of the Ifraelites would bear; thus as they had been long accuftomed to divorces, it was judged right, rather to reftritt them by deliberate regulations, than entirely to abolifh th m,' which might have occafioned bad confequences. Vid. Deut. xxiv. i — 4. Matt. v. 31. xix. 7. Selderi Uxor, Hcb. Lib. iii. ch. 24. The laws with refpedt to paternal authority- were rather regulations to reftrift the unbounded power which pa- rents, among other nations, did poflefs over their children, than to invert them with new rights. [m] Vid0 Chap. xix. 21. whofe OF THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY. 1C1 whole laft days were diftingiiifhed by encreafing foli- ciuide, and by the molt active exertions for the wel- fare of his people After a commemorative hymn [\], in which he pathetically exhorts them " to coniider their latter end ;" and after having uttered his prophetic blefiings in folemn and appropriate pro- miles to the feveral tribes, this great man is repre- fented to have retired, by divine command, to the top of Mount Nebo ; from whence he had a profpect of Canaan, and forefaw the fpeedy accompiifhment of God s promifes. He then, in the full pofleffion of his powers and faculties, " when his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated/' died in the 120th year of his age. The mention of Dan [o] in the firft verfe of the laft chapter of this book, as well as the account of the death and burial of Moles, and fame other feem- [n] The fine atteftation to the praife of Gcd, which is con- tained in the 4th verfe of this hymn, is prefixed as a beginning to the prayer, which the Jews repeat at the burial of their dead, and which they call Tzidduck hadin, that is, " juft judgment," Vid. Patrick in Deut. xxxii. 4. [o] It has been faid, that fome names ufed in the Pent2- teuch were not applied to the places which they defcribe, till after the death of Mofes ; if the truth of this remark couid be proved, we might fuppofe the modern names to have been fubitituted by Ezra, or by fome prophet, poiterior to Mofes, for the information of later times ; but the aflertion often pro- ceeds from miftake, and from a want of diilinclion ; for inftance, the Dan fpoken of by Mofes, m'ght be different from the place afterwards fo named in Judges xviii. 29. Jofephus conceives it to have been a river, one of the fources of the Jordan. Vid. Antiq. Lib. iii. ch. 1 i . ingly 122 OF THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY. ingly pofthumous particulars therein defcribed [p], have been produced to prove, that this chapter could not be written by Moles ; and in all probability thele circumftances might have been inferted by Jofhua, to complete the hiltory of this illuftrious prophet ; or were afterwards added by Samuel, or fome prophet who fucceeded him. They were admitted by Ezra as authentic, and we have no realbn to queftion the fidelity of the account The book is cited as the Book of Mofes in many parts of fcripture [q] ; and numberleis pallages are produced from it in teftimony, by Chrift and his Apoftles [r]. With refpect to the prophetic part of Deutero- nomy, it mould be remarked, that the Meffiah is here more explicitly foretold than in the preceding books, and defcribed as the completion of the Jewifh ceconomy. " I will raiie them up a prophet from * among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth, and he (hall fpeak unto them all that I fhall command him [si" The pro- [p] There has been an abfurb cavil on chap. j. i. of this hook, where Mofes is faid to have written it " on this fide Jordan." The word Beeber applies to either fide in relation to the fpeaker. Vid. i Sam. xiv. 20. Huet. Demon. Evang, Prop. c. iv. Witfius Mifcel. Sac. Lib. i. c. 14. Philo de Vit. Mof. Lib. iii. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. iv. c. 6. Vid. alfo Patrick in Deut. iii. 1 1. [q~J Joih. i. c, 7. 1 Kings ii. 3. 2 Chron. xxv. 4. Dan» ix. 15, &c. [rJ Matt. iv. 4. xv. 4. John i. 4J. Ads iii. 22. Gal. iii. 13. [sj Deut. xviii, 18. comp. with. John i. 45. and Ads vii. 37. phecies OF THE BOOK OF PEUTERONOMY. 123 phecies of Mofes encreafe in number and clearnefs towards the dole of his writings. As he approached the end of his life, he appears to have difcerned fu- turity with more exaelnefs. His denunciations con- cerning the future rewards and puniihments, the fuccefs, difpeifions, and delegations of his people [t] ; his prophetic bleffings on the tribes [v], his defcription of the rapid victories of the Romans [u] ; of the miieries to be fultained by his befieged countrymen [x] ; and particularly his prophecies relative to their prelent condition, as accompliihed under our own obfervation [y], bear a ftriking evi- dence to the truth and infpiration of his writings, and fearfully illuftrate -the character of the divine attributes. The Book of Deuteronomy brings down the fa- cred Hiftory to A. M. 2552, and completes the volume of the Pentateuch, of which every part is uniformly and confrftently perfect [t] Chap. iv. 25 — 30. xi. 23 — 29. xxviii. xxx. xxxi. 2, 3 — 8- xxxii. and xxxiii. [v] Chap, xxxiii. [u] Chap, xxviii. 49 — 52. The Romans are pourtrayed under the defcription of an eagle, in allufion to the image with which their ftandard was decorated. It is remarkable alfo, that the enemy was to come tf from the end of the earth ;" and Vefpafian, in fact, came from Britain againft Jerufalem. [x] Chap, xxviii. 52 — 58. comp. with Jofeph. de Bell. Jud. [v] Chap, xxviii. in which a chain of illuftrious prophecies is delivered in one complicated denunciation, and various cala- mities are blended into one point of view. Vid. Newton on the Prophecies, 7 th Differ. GENERAL 124 GENERAL PREFACE TO GENERAL PREFACE TO THE HISTORICAL BOOKS. THE Iliftorical Books of Scripture were writ- ten by peribns who compofed them under the influence of the Holy Spirit. Some of them are en- titled with the names of cliftingurflied prophets ; and the reft are univerfally attributed to writers inverted with the fame character. The Hebrew annals were kept only by privileged and appointed peribns [a], and the writers, who are occalionally mentioned in feripture as the penmen of the facred hiitory, are ex- prelsly denominated Prophets or Seers [u]. It is evident, likewife, that the authors of the hiftorical as well as of the prophetical books muft have been infpired, fince they every where difplayed an ac- quaintance with the couniels and dcfigns of God ; [\] Vid. Jqfeph. cont. Apion, Lib. I. [b] i Sam. xxii. 5. i King:, xvi. i, 7. 1 Chron. xxix. 29. 1 Chron. xii. 75. xx. 34. xxvi. 22. xxxii. 32. Jcrcm. xxviii. 7. developed THE HISTORICAL BOOKS. 125 developed the fecrctfprings and concealed wifdom of his government ; and often revealed his future mer- cies and judgments in the cleareft predictions. They uniformly adhere to the moft excellent initructiou ; illultrate the perfection of God's attributes, and ex- emplify the tendency of his precepts. They invari- ably maintain a ltrict fincerity of intention; and in their defcription of character and event they exhibit an unexampled impartiality. Their writings were received as facred into the Hebrew canon, and in Ezra s collection they were arranged under the clafs of Prophetical Books. The Books of Joihua, of Judges, (including Ruth,) of Samuel, and of Kings, were called the Books of the former prophets [c] ; and conlidered as the production not only of en- lightened men of unimpeached veracity, exalted cha- racter, and dihntereited views ; but of perfons who were occasionally favoured with divine revelations ; who unquestionably wrote under a divine influence; and were employed to regiiter the judgments and deligns of Cod ; and as fuch, indeed,. they are cited by the evangelical writers. It is clear from all thefe cOnfiderations, that the facred hiftorians wrote under the influence of the Holy Ghoit; which though it did not difclofe to them by immediate revelation thole things that might be collected from the common iburces of intelligence, undoubtedlv directed them in the felection of their j materials; and enlightened them to judge of the [c] Thofe of Ifaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the tvvelra miiiot Prophets, being ftyled the Books of the later Prophets. 1 tnitf* Vl6 GENERAL PREFACE T<5 truth and importance of thofe accounts, from which they borrowed their information. The hifto'rical books appear, indeed, to have been generally written by authors contemporary with thofe periods to which they feverally relate ; and hence do they often de- fcribefuch particulars as the prophets themfelves had witneffed and beheld ; and contain fuch minute and accurate defcriptions, as none but authors coeval with the events could have furriimed. Some of them, however, were compiled in fubfecjuent times ; and then they may be fuppofed to have been in part col- lected from thofe authentic documents that were" known and efteemed by their countrymen; and to have been enlarged with fuch additional particulars, as muft have been derived from divine communica* tions imparted to themfelves, or others. Thefe books are to be considered, indeed, as the hiftories of revelations : as commentaries on the prophecies, and as affording a lively fketch of the ceconomy of* God's government of his felecled people. They were not defigned as national annals, to record every mi- nute particular and political event that occurred; but they are rather a compendious felection of fuch re- markable occurrences as were beft calculated to il- luftrate the religion of the Hebrew nation ; to fct before that perverfe and ungrateful people an abftraCr. of God's proceedings, and of their intereftsand du- ties ; as alfo to furnifh pofterity with an inftruclive picture of the divine attributes, and with a model of that difpenfation on which a nobler and more fpiri- tutd government was to be erefted. It is, indeed, 3 evident, THE HISTORICAL books. 127 evident, that Come more diffuie and circumftantial records [d] were fometimes kept by the prielts, or other publickly-appointed pertbns [e] ; for to iuch records the iacred writers occalionally allude, as bearing teftimony to their accounts ; or refer to them for a more minute detail of thole particulars which they omit as inconfiftent with their defigxis. Thefe, however, not being compofed by infpired writers, were not admitted into the iacred canon ; and though J ofephus informs us, that the prieits were accuftomed after every war carefully to correct and to reform their regifters [f] : and the author of the fecond Book of Maccabees mentions, that Judas Maccabeus gathered together fuch writings as had been difperfed [g] ; yet after the abolition of the Jewifh priefthood, and the many calamities, perse- cutions, and diiperfions which this whole nation hath iuffered, we need not wonder that thefe voluminous writings have perifhed ; and indeed it required the efpecial protection of providence, as well as that re- verential fondnefs which the Jews entertained for the [d] As alfo genealogies, chronicles of the priefthood, Sec. [e] Cont. Apisn, Lib. I. Jofephus fpeaks of genealogical regifters as diftindt from the twenty. two canonical books ; and obferves, that they contained the names of the Hebrew priefts for a fuccefiion of 2000 years. He fpeaks alio of hiftoriea written by others, refpeclable for their conliftency. [f] The keepers of thefe genealogies are fometimes called Mafchirim, Recorders or Memorialifts. 2 Sam. viii. 16. 1 Kings xviii. 18. 1 Chron, xviii. 15. 2 Chron. xxxiv. £. j Mace, xxiii. 24. [o] z Mace. ii. 14. facred 1~S GENERAL PREFACE TO •- facred books, to preferve their canon from deftruction or injury. We have, however, the lefs reafon to regret the lofs of the other Jewifh writings, fince the fcriptures furniih us with the fcheme of prophecy, and with the account of that peculiar cecononiy by which the Jews were diitinguifhed from all other nations. The hiftorical books of fcripture, if coniidered diftinerly from the Pentateuch, and the writings more particularly ftiled prophetical, contain a compendium of the Jewifh hiftory from the death of Moles, A. M. 2552, to the reformation eitablifhed by Nehemiah after the return from the captivity, A. M. 3595. After the death of Moles, Jofhua continued to re- cord thofe miraculous particulars which demonftrated the divine interpofition in favour of the Ifraelites, and to commemorate the events that preceded and accomplished their fettlement in the land of Canaan. The eventful period which fuccceded the death of Jofhua. during which the Hebrews were fubjecled to the government of the Judges, as minifters of the theocracy, furnifhed a large fcope for the induftry of the facred hiitorians ; and Samuel, or fome other prophet, appcars'lo have feleeled fuch particulars as were bcft calculated to deieribe the period ; and to have digefted thcnj into the Look of Judges; having „ doubtlefs procured much information from the re- cords of the Priefts or Judges, fome of whom were inffiiredj though prophetic revelations were " fcarce in thcfe days [iij: " and divine communications were [k] i Sam, iii. t. made THE HISTORICAL ROOKS. Ig,9 made by means of the Urim and Thummim [l]. From the time of Samuel, the Jews ieem to have been favoured m ith a regular I'ucceilion of prophets, who, in an uninterrupted ieries, bequeathed to each other, with the mantle of prophecy, the charge of commemorating fuch important particulars as were confident with the plan of facred hiitory ; and who, luperior to the oitentation of prefixing their names to their feveral contributions, took up the hiftory where the preceding prophet cealed, without diftin- guifhing their relpe&ive contributions. It is poffible, however, that the books of Kings and of Chronicles [i] Exod. xxviii. 30. Levit. via. 8. Numb, xxvii. 21. The Urim and Thummim, which words fignify light and per- fection, are applied to a miraculous ornament worn on the breaft. plate of the high.prieft, and fuppofcd by fome to be defcriptivc of rhe twelve jewels in the breaft-plate, which were engraven with the names of the tribes of Ifrael ; but which perhaps meant fomething diftinft from thefc. Compare Exod. xxxix. 10. with Levit. viii. 8. Some imagine that they were oracular figures that gave articulate anfwers -, others, that they impl'ed only a plate of gold, engraven with the Tetragrammaton, or facred name of Jehovah. Whatever the ornament was, it enabled the high-prieft to collect divine inftruction upon occafions of national importance. Some conceive that the intelligence was furniflied by an extraordinary protrufion or fplendor of the different letters. But others, with more reafon, think that the Urim and Thummim only qualified the prieft to prefent himfelf in the holy place, to receive anfwers from the mercy-feat in the tabtrnacle; and in the camp from fome other confecrated place whence the divine voice might iflue. Vid. Prid. Con. Par. I. Book III. Jennings's Jewifh Antiq. Lib. 111. c. ix. ThiIoJud.de Monarch, Lib. II* Jpericer's Urim and Thummim. K do 130 GENERAL PREFACE TO do not contain a complete compilation of the entire works of each contemporary prophet; but rather an abridgment of their feveral labours, digeited by Ezra, in or after the captivity, with intention to ex-' hibit the iacred hiftory at one point of view: and' hence it is that they contain i'ome expreffions which evidently remit from contemporary defcription; and othersj that as clearlyargue them to have been com-" pofed long after the occurrences which they relate".- Hence alio it is, that though particular periods are more' di-uuiely treated of than others, we ftill find throughout a connected feries of events, and in each individual book a general uniformity of ftile. The object, of the facred hiltorians was to com- municate inftru6tion to mankind, and to illultrate, the nature of God's providence in fmall, as well as in great occurrences, in particular inftances, as well as in general appointments; they therefore often defcend from the'great out4ine Of national concerns to the minute detail of private hiftory. The relations, how- ever, of individual events, ;that arejDccafionally.-in-; terfperfed, are highly interelting; and admirably de- velope the defigns of the Almighty,' and the cha- racter of thofe times to which they arerefpeclively afhgned. Thofe feeming digrefiibns, likewife, in which the infpired writers, have recorded fuch .re- markable events as related to particularperfonages, or fuch occurences in foreign countries, as tended to affecT: the interefts of the Hebrew nation, are' not only valuable for the religious fpirit which they breathe, but are to be admired as ftrictly confiftent with THE HISTORICAL BOOKS, . 1 j ] wMi tbe-iacred plan. TJms the hiftories of Job, of Ruth, and of Either, though apparently extriniic ap- pendages; are in reality connected parts of one en- tire, fabrick; and exhibit, in minute delineation, that wifdoin which is elfewhere displayed on a larger fcalc*; as they likewiie prefent an engaging picture of- that private virtue, which' in an extended influ* ence operated to national prolperity. Thefe books conftitute, then-, an important part of the facred vo- lume ; which furniihes a complete code of inltructive leiibns, conveyed under every form, diverfihed with, every- ftile of compoiition, and enlivened with every illuitration of circumitance. While the twelve tribes Mere united under one government, their hiftory is reprefented under one point of view. When a feparation took place, the kingdom of Judah, from which tribe theMeifiah was to defcend, was the chief object of attention with the -facred hiitorians; they however occafionally treat of the events that occurred in Samaria, efpecially when connected with the concerns of Judah: they draw initrucuve accounts of the government of Ifrael, from the feparation of the ten tribes to their captivity; and place the circumftances which pro- duced it in ftr iking colours before the inhabitants of Judah, whole unrighU'oufuefs was afterwards pu- nithed by a fimilar fate. Some account of the circum- ftances which occurred in Samaria, was kept proba- bly by thofe prophets, who were born, or laboured among the people of that country [k] ; and the [k] i Kings xix. 18. xi. 29. xiv. 2. xyi. 7. 2 Chron. xxviii. 9. K 2 fame 132 GENERAL PREFACE TO fame prophets furnilhed materials for the facred authors of the hiftorical books, who were prophets of Judah. The prophets who were mercifully raifed up to confole the Hebrew nation during the Babylonim captivity, have fcattered among their predictions fome few lines of contemporary hiftory ; but they have fumifhed no particular account of the cir- cumftances that diftinguimed the condition of their countrymen ; who, however, muft have re- ceived every poifible mitigation of the fe verity of their affliction, from the good offices of fuch among them as conciliated the favour of the Babyloniih fovereigns; and from the prophetic affurances which opened to them the profpect of a return to their country. As the fucceflion of the prophets ceafed in Mala- chi, the volume of the facred hiftory was doled with the account of the restoration of the Jews, and of their exertions to rebuild their cities, and to re-efta- blifh the order and fecurity of their government. The laft description represents them fettled and re-> formed by the pious zeal of Nehemiah, and ani- mated to the expectation of that " greater glory," which fhould mine in their latter temple, when '* the delire of. all nations ihould come [l]/' Jn potfeffion of the complete volume of the Scrip- tures, fhe Jews required no farther revelations of the divine will to explain and inculcate the terms of |;heir acceptance. Enabled by the facred records /• [l] Haggai ii. 7, 9. "to THE HISTORICAL BOOKS. 133 to look back on the viciflitudes which their nation had experienced, and to contemplate the character of God's judgments in the inllruftive lcenes, they needed no longer any living prophet to warn them of that wrath which iin and idolatry would provoke [m], or to allure them of that recornpenfe which obedience would obtain. The defign and character alfo of the old covenant, its fpiritual import, and its figurative contexture, were now unravelled for the initru6tion of mankind, and no fit fubjecl; re- mained for the employment of the infpired penmen, till the appearance of a new diipenfation. Of the period, therefore, that inteivened between the death of Malachi, and the arrival of that meffenger whom he foretold, no authentic account can be obtained [jf]. An awful interval of expectation prevailed before the coming of him who was to appear alone, on which but little light is thrown by the occafional accounts of apocryphal and prophane hiitorians. The nation, however, appears to have been fuccefj lively fubje&ed to the Perfian, Egyptian, and Syrian monarchies, till refcued into liberty by the valour of the Maccabees, in whom the fucceffors of David were re-eftablifhed on the throne. Thefe continued to flouriih, with diminiihed fplendor, and in fubfer- viency to the Roman power, till the days of Herod, under whom Chrift Mas born, and " the fceptre departed from Judah [o]." Iff [m"J Luke xvi. 29, 31. [n] Eufcbius attempts not to go beyond Zerubbabel. [o] Gen. xlix. 10. The fceptre departed from JudarVwhen Herod, who was an Idumsean profelyte, afcendcd the throne. K3 The 134- GENERAL PREFACE TO In a retrofpect of the facrcd hiftory, it is obvious to remark, that one deiign of the inipired writers was, to place before us the melancholy proofs of that corruption which had been entailed on mankind \ and to exhibit in the depravity of a nation highly fa- voured, miraculoufly governed, and inftrucled'by in- fpired teachers", the neeemty of that redemption and renewal of righteoumefs,- which was fo early and fo repeatedly promiled by the prophets. The univerfai iniquity overwhelmed by the flood [p]; the incor- rigible perverfenefs of the Hebrew nation; the lapfe of the molt upright perlons/ and i\\e hardened andi obdurate wickednefs of -cdnfirmed Yinners, are in- dultriou'fly difplayed with this view; and in a long iucceffion of dark fcenes,~no perfect character can be found ; and^Jbut fewp comparatively, whole Vir- The defcendants of Zerobabel, as alfo the Afmonxans, who till this time had poflefled the government (fometimes, irideed, in refWcted fubjection.to foreign, powers) were . of the tribe of Judah, though the. Afmona?ans. were by the female line. In cou> fequence of this predicted change of government, the expectation of " the Shiloh" was fo general, that it gave rife to a feci: called Herodians> who flattered Herod as being the Mefliali ; as well as to the notion afterwards maintained by fome, 'that Agrippa, the grandfcn of Herod by Mariamne (the graud.daug.hter* of Hy-rca. nus, the Afmonasan prieft) was eatitled to that diftinctiop; not to mention the pumberlefs faife prophets who called themfelves " the Chrift*." Vid. Cyril. Alex. cont. Julian. Hieron. in So- phon. cap. i. Epiph. Hsris. 20. Tertu'l. dc Prefer. Schol. in Pcrfii Satyr. 5. !. 180. Baron Apparat. ad Annal. Ecclef. p. 1. Jofeph. Antitj. Lib. XII. §". 8. 1 Chron. iii. Matt. i. Luke iii. [p J wen, vi. 5. - ■ , .'. • .... • ••"- . J * . „. tue«- THE HISTORICAL BOOKS. 135 tues could be propofed for imitation to mankind. The facred writers delcribed characters and paffions as they beheld them, without flattery or difguife, often without comment or remark; leaving, them to excite thofe fentiments of efteem or repugnance which they were ieveraljy calculated to, awaken. In Ibme righteous characters, however, they tranfcribe and exemplify the. purity of God's laws; and thofe pre- cepts which, they interweave in their relations, are always . excellent In the judgments of God tiiey likewife. pourtray his attributes ; represent him as watching oyer.innocence ; as indulgently fufpending wrath; but. as finally avenging himfelf on unrepented fin.s. They felecl; from the events of their hiftory thofe circumftances which are beft calculated to fur- niih initruclion, and therefore often pafs with rapidity over great national events, and dilate widi minute- nefs on whatever may ferve .to mew the nature of the divine government, or to illultrate the interefts and duties of mankind. If they fometimes admit particulars, of which the defign in thefe refpe&s is not obvious, it mult be recollected, that fuch par- ticulars might have had an importance among the Jews, though we are no longer fenfible of their utility., - The chronological and genealogical accounts, which now ferve chiefly to prove the information and accuracy of the facred hiftorians, formerly affilt- ed to keep up neceflary diftinctions, and to afcertain the exacl; accomplilhment of prophecy. If, with re- gard to thefe, or any other minute particulars, the K 4 facred 136 GENERAL PREFACE TO facred books now feem to contain any inconfiftencies or errors, thefe muft be attributed to the negligence of eopyifts, and to the infenfible corruptions which rnuft arife from frequent tranfcription, efpecially in fueh points. The errors, however, which induftrious objection affefrs to difcover, are often imaginary ; and it is not probable, even if we iuppofe the au- thors of thefe books to have been merely human, unailifted writers, that they mould be fo little con- verfant with the hiitory of their country, as to be guilty of the contradictions which modern commen- tators have pretended to point out ; and which, if they had exifted, muff, as more glaring to their con- temporaries whom thefe writers a ddreffed, have ne^ ceffarily diminiihed their credit. The truth is, that if we are fometimes perplexed with difficulties, it is in confequence of the want of contemporary ac- counts, and an effect of that obfcurity which muft be fuppofed to overfhadow periods fo long elapfed; and the genealogical and chronological differences which are faid fometimes to prevail, have arifen not only from the corruptions to which numbers are particularly fubjeft, but from the different fcope which the writers took. In the detail of lineage, the facred writers often infertedonlyiliuftrious perfons, and fometimes added collateral kindred [<*]. They fometimes altered name«, where variety admitted preference, as was [q] Le Clerc Sentimens de quclques Th«ol. Theod. Prsf. in Qttit'ft. Lib. Reg-. R. David Kimchi. Michael, Sec. cuftomary THE HISTORICAL BOOKS. 13? cuftomary among eaftern nations ; and in chrono- logical accounts they calculated frequently in round numbers, where accuracy was of no con- fequence [r]. They likewise ail'iimed various aeras, Thus in Genefis, Mofes reckoned only by the ages of the patriarchs. In Exodus he, as lucceeding prophets, dated from the departure out of Kgypt ; and others, who lived in later times, from the build- ing of the temple [s] ; from the commencement of the reigns of their feveral kings [t] ; from their cap- tivities and deliverances [u], and other important national events [x] ; or, laftly, from the reigns of foreign kings [y] ; whom if they defcribed by names different from thofe under which they are mentioned in prophane hiftory, it was in accommodation to the titles by which they were known to the Jews. The difficulties which occur on a fuperficial perufal of the fcriptures chiefly originate in want of attention to thefe confiderations ; and they who have not the leiiure and induftry which are neceiiary to elucidate fuch particulars, will do well to collect the obvious inftruction which is richly fpread through every page of the facred volume, rather than to embark in fpe- culations of delicate difcuffion, or to entangle them- felves in objections which refult from ignorance, [r] Gen. xy. 13. 1 Kings vi. I. Uffer Chron, Sac. c. 12. [s] 2 Chron. viii. 1. [tJ As the earlier prophets. £u] Ezek. 1. 2. [x] Amos i. 1. [r] Ezek, *i. U D3i. x, 1, Zechar, i. it Haggai i. », Ths I5S GENERAL PREFACE, &C. The hiltorical, like all other parts of fcripture, have every mark of genuine and unaffecled truth. Many relations are interwoven with accounts of other na- tions, yet no inconfiftencies have been detected. A connected and dependent chain of hiftory, an uni- form and pervading fpirit of piety, a co-operating deiign, invariably prevails in every page of the facred books, and the historical unfold the accomplimment of the prophetic parts. or [ 139 J OF Tilt BOOK of JOSHUA. IT has been contended by fome writers, that the Book which paffes under the name of Joihua in all the copies, was not written by him ; but that this title was cholen rather as descriptive of the chief per- ion age of the book, than with defign to intimate its author ; in the fame manner as the books of Either, of Job, or of Ruth, are fo called, becaufe they treat principally concerning the actions of thofe perfons whole names they respectively bear. But if we wave all arguments that might be drawn from the title, there will Still remain Sufficient grounds to conclude,, that the book, or at leaft the greater part of it, was written by Joihua himfelf, agreeably to the general opinion. It is, indeed, exprelsly laid, towards the concluiion of the book, that Jofhua wrote theSc words in the book of the law of God [a], which Seems to imply, that he Subjoined this hiitory to the Pentateuch. [a] Chap. xxiv. 26. See alfo 1 Kings xvi. 34. cpmp. with Joihua Vi. 26, Joshua 9 140 OF THE BOOK OF JOSHtfA. Joshua is re pre fen ted through the whole work as appointed by God to govern and inftruct his peo- ple. He is likewife defcribed in the book of Eccle- fiafticus [jb], under the title of " Jefus the fon of Nave," as " the fuccefibr of Mofes in prophecies;" there is therefore ample reafon to be convinced, that Joihua was the author of the book, except, perhaps, of a few verfes towards the conclufion ; the account of his death being added by one of his iucceffors, in like manner as he might have fupplied what was necefikry to complete the hiftory of Mofes. The ancient Talmudifts, and the voice of general tradi- tion, attribute the book to Joihua; and it is ex- prefsly fa id in Bava Bathra, that Joihua wrote the book diftinguiihcd by his name [c] ; and the eight lalt verfes of the law. It is alio added, in the fame place, that Eleazar wrote the twenty-ninth verfe of the twenty-fourth chapter of Joihua, a&Phineasdid the thirty-third ; and probably all the five laft verftjg were added by Eleazar the high-prieit, his fon Phi- neas, or Samuel. The principal objections made againft the align- ment of this book to Joihua are, firft, that in the thirteenth verfe of the tenth chapter, the circum- ftance of the fun and moon being ftayed, is laid to be written in the book of Jaihir ; by which it is meant to infmuate, that the book of Joihua is only a com- pendious hiftory, felecled from larger chronicles, in [b] Ecclus xlvi, i. [c] Bava Bathra, cap. i. Spanhem. Hift. Eccl. V- 'I. Tom. i. P. 339. later OF THE BOOK OF JOSHUA. 14! }ater times. Now to whatever book this reference may be fuppoied to apply, whether to a previous narrative, or to a fang composed on the occafion qf the great event here ipoken of, it does not follow that Jofhua could not be the author of a work in which the book of Jalhir is quoted ; as probably con- taining a more minute and circumstantial account of this remarkable miracle [dJ. Secondly, thole expreliions which have been brought to prove that the hiitorv was written long niter the events therein recorded, as that the ilones which Jofhua let up, " are there unto this day [eJ/' with fimilar pallages, which argue that the relation was fometime fubfe- quent to the occurrences deicribed, do in reality only ferve to fhew, what other circumstances confirm, that Jofhua wrote the book towards the conclulion of his days ; and then, as fpeaking of the earlier periods of his government, he might confidently ufe thefe and fimilar expreilions [f]. It has been averted, farther, that fome things arc [d] Jofhua defcribes this miracle according to the received. notions of aftronomy. Vid. Calmet DifTert. fur le Comrnmde- ment, &c. [e] Chap. iv. 9. v. 9. Vid. alfo chap. x. %"]. Matth. xxvii. S. [f] The hook muft have been written by a perfon at leaft nearly contemporary with Jofhua, fince Rahab was living in the author's time. Vid. chap. vi. 25. and v. I. where the author fpeaks of himfelf as prefent at the p2fTage over Jordan. Obferve alfo chap. viii. 28. xv. 63. xvi. 10. and the circum- flantial detail of particulars which argues a contemporary writer. related-. 142 OF THE BOOK OF JOSHUA, related in this book which did not happen till after the death of Jofhua; as the expedition of the Danites againft Lefhem [g] ; which apparently is related as a iubiequent event in the book of Judges. Hence fome have attributed the book to Eleazar; fome to Samuel; and fome to Ifaiah, or Ezra, and others; but it is not neceffary on this account to deprive Jofhua of his title to the book; for if the relation in Judges be not the hiitory of a different expedi- tion [h], we may fuppofe the account in this book to be an interpolation made by Ezra, or fome pro- phet pofterior to Jofhua ; and this is the more pro- bable folution of the difficulty, fince the verfe which records the conqueft of the Danites, appears evi- dently to be an intrinsic addition, afterwards infert- ed to complete the account of the Danite's poflef- fions. It may be remarked farther, that whatever is faid of Othniel and Achfah, in the book of Judges, is only a recapitulation of what happened under Jofhua [i]. The land of Cabul mentioned in Jofhua [k], is by Jofephus diftinguifhed from -that [g] Chap. xix. 47. [.H-j Judges. xviii.- 27 — 29. It is poffible that the Laifh men- tioned in Judges was a different place from the Lefhem fpoken of in Jofhua.-. The accounts, indeed, vary in fome cireumftances, In. Jofhiia,.: Lefhem. itfclf is find to have been called Dan. "In Judges,. Laifh is r-eprefented to have been burnt, and the city which was built in its- room was called Dan. [j.J. Chap. xv.. 1 3-, 19. and Judges i. 11 — 15. or the paffage rtn'gbt ..be.a.fubfequent infertion into the book of Jofhua. [k] Chap. xix. 27. and 1 Kings ix. 13. The former a city on the borders of Ptolemais, the latter a diftrift containing (everaLtowns. Vid. Jofcph. Antiq. Lib. VIII. c. ii. Huet. Demon. OF THE BOOK OF JOSHUA. 143 that which is fpoken of in the book of Kings ; and " the houlc of God" in this book, does not imply the temple ; which was. not built till long after the death of Joihua ; but means the Taber- nacle and Ark, which did exilt in his time. Theie" difficulties being thus removed, we may conclude that Joiliua was the author of the book that bears his name. It contains an account of the-diitribution of property, which mult loon have been committed to writing. It was admitted by Ezra into the canon as infpired, and it is cited as fcripture by many of the facred writers [i.], and especially as the work of Jofhua in Kings, where his words are faid to be the words of God [m]. Joshua who was the fon of Nun, of the tribe of Ephraim, was firft called Ofea, or Hoiea [x], a name, which, as it fignifies Saviour, was well adapt- Demon. Evan. Prop. iv. The idea that places are in this book fomctimes diftinguifhed by names not adopted till later time*, is, perhaps, often fanciful, fince the origin and date of names are extremely uncertain ; but where modern names are found, they might have been affixed by thofe who read, copied, or revifed the book. [l] i Chron. ii. 7. xii. 15. Pfa. cxix. 3. Ifa. xxviii. 21. Acts \ ii. 45. Hcb. xi. 31. xiii. 5. James ii. 25, 28. Ecclus xlvi. 4. 1 Mac. ii. 5, 6. [m] 1 Kings xvi. 34. [n] ]/tyin, Hofca falvator HBMrVj Joihua dominus falvator.. The former denotes an hope, the latter an aflurance of falva- tion. Mofes appears to have made this flight change in the name of Jofhua, in order to commemorate his appointment " to fpy out the land" into which he was afterwards -'to conduct the people. Vid. Num. xiii. 16, 17. Auguft. cont. Fault. Tom. VI, Lib. XVI. c. 19. ed 144 OF THE BOOK OF JOSHUA. ed to his character as typical of our fpiritual Savioar, He is alfo by St. Luke, and by the author of Ec- clefiafticus, ftiled Jcfus ; a juft rcprefentative of that Jefus who leads us into a Canaan of endlefs felicity, through the water of baptifm [o]. Joiliua was " filled with the fpirit of wifdom,1' and took upon him the government of lirael by command of God [pj ; agreeably to the prediction of Moles, who had promifed that " the Lord mould raife up a prophet like unto him, as his iucceffor [q]." The piety, courage, and disinterested integrity of Joihua are confpicuoufly dii played through the whole courfe of his conduct Independently of the infpiration -which enlightened his mind and writings, he derived divine information, fometimes by immediate revelation from God [r] ; and fometimes from the fancluary, and by the mouth of Eleazar the high-prieft, the fon of Aaron, who having on the breaft-plate, and pre- fentinghimfelf before the veil over againft the mercy - [o] Acts xvii. 45. Ecclus xlvi. i, Heb. iv. 8. Grot. Com. in Matt. i. 21. [p] Numb, xxvii. 18 — 20. Deut. xxxi. 7, 14. xxxiv. g, Jofhua i. 5. [oj Deut. xviii. 15. This prophecy is in a more efpecial fenfe applicable to Chnft, the archetype of the prophets. [rJ Chap. iii. 7. v. 15 — 15. It is generally fuppofed in con. ibrmity with the fentiments of the ancient Hebrew and Chriftian churches, that the perfon who, in the inflance laft referred to, is related to have appeared to Jofhua, was God himfelf, as he is afterwards called the Lord (Jehovah in the Hebrew) ch. vi. 2. and Jofhua would not have been fuffered to worfhip, much lefs required to reverence, a created being. Vid. Rev. xxii. 8, 9, 'It was therefore probably the divine Xoyo?, the angel of the pvenant, who appeared. Eufeb. Hid. Lib. I. c. 2. feat OF THE COOK OF JOSHUA/ I4.V feat whereon relied the divine prefence '[.s], con-' fulted God by the Urim and Thummim ; and God ani'wered him by a voice which iffued from the mercy-It -at. Dufing the life of this excellent chief. the Israelites were preferved in fome obedience tQ God, and flourrftied under his protection ; and we contemplate with fatisfa6tion, the defcription of a well-governed and fuccefsful people. Joshua, the leader, as the hiltorian of the Ifraelkes-, reprefents in lively colours the progrefs of a nation, led on to rapid and great victories by the guidance of the Lord ; yet occasionally checked in their ca- reer, that they might be convinced of their depen- dance on God for iuccefs, and that it was not " their own arm"' which had procured it. He relates, with all the animation of one who was appointed to be an agent in the icencs difplayed, the fucceffive miracles that favoured and effected the conqueft of the country ; and unfolds the accomplifhment of the Mofaic prophecies concerning the poffefuon and diviiion of the promifed land [t]. Int the courfe of the narrative, Jofhua points out the attention paid to the divine precepts in the cir- [s] The Shechinah was a viiibtc fymbol of the divine pre- fence, which, after having conducted the Israelites through the wildernefs, refted in a glorious cloud between the Cherubims in the tabernacle, and afterwards in the temple ; and hence the divine oracles were delivered. Vid. Lowman's Rationale of the Hebrew Ritual, Part II. ch. ii. [t] Gen. xii. 7. xvii. S. Exod. xv. 14 — 17. xxiii. 23, xxxiii. 7. Numb, xxxiv. 2. Dcut. i. 7, 8. xxxii. 49. L cumcition US Or THE BOOK 01 JOSHUA. cum.cifion of the people [u] ; in the letting up of the Tabernacle ; and in the appointment of the cities of refuge. The book concludes with the account of the renewal of the covenant ; and of the afreclins exhortation and death of Joihua, which terminates an ■interesting hiftory of about thirty years from A. M. 2553 to A. M, 2583 [x] : the whole of which is ani- mated by the difplay of God's attributes, and recom- mended by the nobleft fentiments of piety. It is [u] The command given to Joihua to circumcife again the children of Ifrael, was only to renew a rite which had been omitted in the wildernefs. " The reproach of Egypt,'* which was thereby " rolled away," meant probably the op- probrium incurred by the Egyptians, who might have neg- " leered the rite in compliance with the requisitions of the uncir- • cumcifed Horites that over-ran Egypt, or who, perhaps, might not yet have adopted it. If we understand that the Egyptians upbraided the Israelites for the negleft of circumcifion, it will by no means follow, that the latter nation learnt it from the former ; but rather that the Egyptians made it a fubjeel; of re- proach to the Ifraelites, that they negledted in the wildernefs whaf they profeifed to confider as a rite of diftinttion, and the leal of the promifes. Vid. Shuckford's Conn. vol. iii. b. xii. and Patrick in Joihua, ch. v. 6 — 9. Spencer conceives, that the reproach of Egypt was the flavery to which they had been fubjecled; and from which they were now refcued and de- clared free, by this token of a free people. Vide Spencer de Leg. Ileb. L. I. c. iv. j~x] Including the account of Eleazar's death, who out- lived Joihua about five or fix years. This computation is like- wife grounded on a fuppolition that Joihua was employed feven years in completing the conqueft of the country, and that e lurvived it about eighteen year?. Some do not admit that he governed the people fo long. Vid. Jofeph. Antiq. lib. V. c. 1, [ occafionallv Oi' THE BOOK OF JOSHUA, 147 occafionally inierfperfed with prophecies [v], and diftiuguiihed throughout by every mark of fidelity and truth. Joihua, like his predecelTor, dclcribes the dii'obedience and trani'grei'iions of the Jews, not concealing his own errors. He confpires in the fame zealous deiigns with Moles, and earneitly recommends an attention to the laws and ftatutes which that legi- slator had delivered. The book mult have been a molt valuable poffeffion to the Ifraeiites, as it con- tained theearlielt and molt authentic documents re- lative to the property of every tribe, and furnithed to each the title of its refpe&ive inheritance. It is neceilary to remark, that there is fome acci- dental derangement in the order of the chapters of this book, occafioned probably by the mode of roll- ing up manufcripts anciently obferved. If chrono- logically placed, they mould be read thus : firft chap- ter to the tenth verfe ; then fecond chapter; then from the tenth verfe to the end of the firft chapter ; after- wards mould follow the fixth and confecutive chap^ ters ; to the eleventh ; then the twenty-fecond chap- ter ; and, laftly, the twelfth and thirteenth chapters, to the twenty-fourth verfe of the latter [z]. Joshua fucceeded Moles in the government of Ifrael about A. M. 2553 ; and died in the 1 10th year of his age, A. M. 2578, at Timnah-feweh ; where he had retired, contemplating from Mount Ephraim the well-ordered and peaceful government which he [y] Chap. iii. io — *7.,vi. 2^- compared with 1 Kings xvi, 34. Jofti. xxiii. 13 — 16. [z] Bedford's Scrip. Chron. Book V, p, 590, L 2 had HS OF THE BOOK OF JOSHUA. had eftablifhed [a] ; and exhorting the people. %\ ith his -la ft words to a remembrance of God's mercy, and to an observance of Ins laws. The memory of Joihua, and of his victories, was long preferred, and his reputation fpread among the heathen nations [b]. He is generally coniidered as the original of the Phoenician Hercules ; and the fee tie of his victories, as well as the conquefts them- felves, is ftill difcernable in the disfigured accounts which are given concerning that fictitious hero [c]. It has been collected from monuments ftill extant, that the Carthaginians were a colony -of the Tvrians who -fled from the exterminating i'word of Jofhua [d] ; as alio, that the inhabitants of Leptis in Africa, were primarily derived from Zidonians, who had [a] The Vatican copy of the Septuagint verfion has the -following addition annexed to the account of Jofhua's burial, in the thirtieth verfe of the lafl: chapter: ',* There they put with him into the fepulchre in which they buried hjm, the knives of flint with which he circumcifed the kingdom of Ifrael in Gilgal, when he brought them out of Egypt, as the Lord commanded them;" and they are there unto this day. The Alexandrian copy has it not. Vide Harmer, vol. iv. p. 398. [b] Some traces of the miracle of the fun and moon being ftayed for a whole day by Joihua, are difcovered in the Chinefe records, as well as in the disfigured accounts of Statius and Ovid. Vid. Martinii Hift. Sinic. Lib. r. p. 57. Stat. Thebais, Lib. IV. I. 307. Ovid. Metamor. de Phaeton. [c] Procop. Vandal. Lib. II. c. 10. Polyb. Frag. 114. Salluft. Bellum Jugurth. The Mahometans relate many fabulous ilories of Joihua. Vid. Herbclot, Bib. Oriental, fub voce Jefchowa. [d] Affix's ReSea. on Books of Old Tell. been OF THE BOOK OX' JOSHUA. j-j,9 been compelled to forfake their country in confe- quence of calamities brought upou it by the con-* quelts of this great commander. The Samaritans are by ibine writers fuppofcd to have received the book of Jofhua ; there is (till ex- tant a Samaritan book entitled, the book of Joihua, which differs coniiderably from the Hebrew copy, containing a chronicle of events badly compiled from trie death of Moles to the time of the Emperor Adrian. It coniifts of 47 chapters lwelled with fa- bulous accounts. It is written in Arabic in the Samaritan character [e]. After having been long loft, it was recovered by Scaliger, and depofited at Leyden, in manufcript, and ha3 never been pub- limed. The Jews fuppofe Jofhua to have been the author of a prayer which they repeat in part on quitting the fynagogue. It is in celebration of God's good- nels for having granted them an inheritance iupe- rior to that of the reft of mankind [f]. [e] Fabric. Apocryph. V. Teft. p. 876, and feq, [f] Vagen's Tela Syriac, p. 223., and feq. L3 OF [ 150 J Of THE BOOK of JUDGES. THIS Book has been generally attributed to Samuel, in agreement with the opinion Of the Talmud ical do&ors [a]. Some writers have afiigned [a] Bava Bathra, c. i. Kimchi Abarb. Ifid. Lib. VI. c. ii. The Talmud, from "no^n, do&rine, is a Jewifh book, containing explanatory remarks on the law, «and reverenced by the Jews, as much as, or more than the law, as the great foiirce of their reli- gious opinions. It confifts of two parts : the Mifchna, or text ; and the Geniara, or complement. The former the Jews profefs to have received as an oral I3.W, delivered to Mofes by God ; but in reality it confifts of traditions accumulated from the time of Simon, or Ezra, and contains fome ufeful inftruclions. The Gemara is a commentary of wild fancies on the Mifchna. There are two Talmuds, that of Jerufalem, and that of Babylon ; the laft of which is moft efteemed. It appeared in the lixth or feventh century, about 200 years after the former. Maimonides pub- lished a good commentary on it. Vide Buxtorf. Recenlio opor : Talmud. Porta Mofis, in Pocock's works, vol. i. Morin. Exercit. Biblk. Lexic. Buxtorf. Rabbin, p. 2610. Prid. Con. Part I. B. V. Mark vii. 7, 8, 13. The Popes, where they have had influence, have often procured the deftrudion of the Talmuds, as containing pernicious opinions. Much truth, however, is concealed under . the chimerical expofitions and accounts therein contained. it OF THE BOOK. OF JUDGES, 3J1 it to Phinehas ; fome to Hezekiah ; and fome to Eze- kiel; and others have fuppofed that Ezra collected it from fuch memoirs as every judge refpcCtively fur- niihed of his own government. It ieems, however, molt probable, that Samuel was the author; who, being a prophet or leer, and described in the book of Chronicles as an hiftorian, may reasonably be fuppofed, inafmuch as he was the laft of the Judges, to have written this part of the Jewiih hiitory; fince the infpired writers alone were permitted to defcribe thole relations, in which were interwoven the in- itruclions and judgments of the Lord [b]. The book appears to have been written after the eftablimment of the regal government, fmce the au- thor, in fpeaking of preceding events, obferves, that " in thole days there was no king in Ifrael [c];" which feems to imply that there were kings when he wrote. There is alio fome reafon to think, that it was written before the aceefiion of David, fince it is laid in the twenty-firft verfe of the fir ft chapter, that " the Jebuiites were ftill in Jerufalem," who were difpoiTefied of that city early in the reign of David fp]. It was likewife written before the books of Samuel [e]; and therefore if the author be underftood, as he is ufually fuppofed, to fpeak in the thirtieth verfe of the eighteenth chapter, of that captivity [e] which happened [b] Jofeph. cont. Apion. Lib. I. [c] Chap. xix. i. xxi. 25. [d] 2 Sam. v. 6 — 8. [e] Compare 2 Sam. xi. 21. with Judges ix. 53. [f] The captivity here fpoken of muft have happened be- fore the reign of David, who would not have fuffered the L 4 idolatrous 1 Oii OF THE BOOK OF JU.pGLS., happened in the time of Eli, when the ark was cap- tured by the Philiftines, and the idol of Micah was deftroyed [g] ; there is no objection to the general opinion, which attributes the book to Samuel [h] ; who may be conceived to have written it in Ramoth- Gilead, after the election of Saul. The book is properly inferted between thole of Jofhua and Samuel, as the Judges were governors intermediate between Jofhua and the Kings of Ifrael. They were illuftrious princes of the houfe of Judah [i], raifed up by God, not in regular fucceffion, but as emergencies required, when the repentance of the liraelites influenced him to companionate their dif- trefs, and to afford them deliverance from their dif- idolatrous images to remain among his people. When the ark was captured, many of the Ifraelites muft have been taken likewife ; and the Pfalmift exprefsly calls this taking of the ark, <{ a captivity." Vid. Pfal. lxxviii. 60 — 62. as the wife of Phinehas lamented tjiat then " the glory was departed from Ifrael/' Vid. 1 Sam. iv. 22. TcJ 1 Sam. iv. 11. and ch. v. Selden de Syntag. I. de Diif. Syris, cap. ii. and Calmet on Judg. ch. xviii. 30. [hJ The word K*!1J, Nabia, which is ufed in this book, might well be employed by Samuel, who wrote the firft part at lead of the tirft Book of Samuel. Vid. 1 Sam. ix. 9. The houfe of God means the Tabernacle, as in Jofhua. [1] They were called Shophctim, in the Hebrew, which fignifies judges. They had the fupreme power under fome re- ftric~tions ; and without the enfigns of royalty, b^'ng minifters of God, fubfervient to the theocracy. Vid. chap. viii. 23. Some reckon fifteen and fome fixteen Judges. They were fometimes elected by the people on the performance of great exploits, and generally continued for life. Acuities, OF THE BOOK OF JUDGES. l$$ Acuities. They frequently a&ed by a divine fug- gcftion, and were endowed with preternatural ftrength and fortitude [k.] After the death of Jofhua, the people appear for a ihort time to have had no regularly appointed governor [l], but to have acted in feparate tribes. They were for a few years retained in the fervice of God, by the elders whofurvived Jofhua, but after- wards fell into a ftate of anarchy, for a period of which we have no account, but as to thofe particu- lars fcattered towards the beginning and conclusion of this book. We find, however, that the people proceeded to the conqueft of the remaining part of the country, but that, gradually forgetting the in- itrucrions of Moles, and of Jofhua, and notwith- ftanding a rebuke which they received from an angel of God [m], they fuftered the inhabitants to remain tributary among them ; who became, as had been [k] Chap. ii. 18. vi. 14, 54. xi, 29, xiv". 6, 19. The Jews imagine, without fufficient reafon, that they were endued with the fpirit of prophecy. Vid. Maimon. More Nevoch. Par. II. c. >:lv. Grot, in Jud. i. 1. [l] In the Samaritan chronicle, it is faid, that Jofhua ap- pointed his nephew Abel to fucceed him, upon whom the govern- ment fell by lot; but this is a fabulous account. Vid. Saurin. DifTert. fur Heglon Roi des Moabites. Hotting. Smeg. Oriental, c. viii. p. 522. [m] Chap. ii. 1. by the word *]N^o ayye*c?, nuntius, foir.fi underftand a prophet, which it forr.ctimes fignifies, as in Hag- gai i. 13. But there is no reafon why we fhould not fuppofe the meffenger to have been an angel, as angels undoubtedly appeared on other occafions, the minifters of God's miraculous government of the Ifraclites. repeatedly 134 OF THE BOOK OF JUD^Eo repeatedly predicted, " fcourges in their fides, and thorns in their eyes/' and, as it were, " ihares and traps'' to ieduce them to idolatry [n]. For this they were punifhed, and given up to their enemies, and held eight years' in fervitude to Cuihan, king of Mefopotamia, till God railed up Judges to deliver them. Othniel appears to have been the firft judge ; though forne writers lay, that Simeon, and others, that Caleb [o] preceded him in the government of the people. During the intervals between the Judges, each tribe was governed by its refpective elders ; [n] Exod. xxiii. 33. xxxiv. 12. Jofh. xxiii. 13. Judg. ii. 2. Tjfce Ifraelites were permitted to render tributary thofe nations who fubmitted to them, though they were to fupprefs their idolatrous worfhip, <( to break down their images, and to de- ftroy their groves." But thofe nations who in defiance of God's declared favour oppofed them, were to be deftroyed ; and as to the feven nations of Canaan, of thofe who refitted, " nothing that breathed was to be faved alive ;" that every trace of idolatry might be fwept away. Vid. Deut. xx. 10 — 18. vii. 1 — 6. 1 Sam. xv. c. Though this deft ruction was enjoined only in cafe of refiftance, yet with no idolatrous city whatever, were the Ifraelites allowed by the divine command, to make any league or covenant ; for in thefe the authority of thofe deities, whofe fanc~Hon mud have been adjured, would have been ad- mitted, and fome toleration given to a worfhip that might have tended to the feduction of the Ifraelites. Vid. Exod. xxiii. 32. They were therefore enjoined, gradually, to extirpate the civil and religious communities of the land, and to ren- der the people tributary and dependant as individuals. All thefe inftru&ions, however, the people violated, and fuffered for their difobedieuce. Vid. Shuckford's Con. vol. iii. B. XII. [o] Bedford's Script. Chron. Lib. V. c. iii. affairs or THE BOOK OF JUDGES. 155 affairs of importance being referred to the great council, or Sanhedrim [p]. The hiftory of this book may be divided into two parts ; the firft containing an account of the Judges from Othniel to Samlbn, ending at the fixteenth chapter. The fecond part describing feveral re- markable particulars that occurred not long after the death of Joiliua, which are placed towards the end of the book in the feventeenth and following chapters, that they may not interrupt the courfe of the hiftory. What relates to the two lalt Judges, Eli and Samuel, is recorded in the following book. The chronology of this period is entangled with many difficulties ; but if we include the period of 34 years, which may be fuppofed to have intervened between the death of Joiliua and the judicature of Othniel, the book extends its hiftory from A. M. 2578, to the death of Samfon, A. M. 2887, and the government of the Judges may be conceived to [p] The great council appointed by Mofes, -continued pro. bably to exiit, at leaft, till the eftablifhment of the monarchi- cal government, though there are no proofs that its members retained the gift of iufpiration. Whether the Sanhedrim were the fame council continued, or a fubfequent inftitution in the time of the Maccabees, is uncertain. Like that, however, it confided of 70 or 72 elders: thefe were rnoftly Priefts and Levites, over which the high-prieit generally, but not necef- farily, prefided. It decided on momentous affairs, civil and religious, and fubfifted to the time of Chrift, but with authority diminifhed in fubjeftion to the Roman power. Matth. v. 21. Mark xiii. 9. Selden de Synod. Beaufobre's Introduce, to Script. There were feveral inferior and dependant Sanhedrims. The word is derived from Qvntyov, a council or affembly. have 156 OF THE BOOK OF JUDGES; have continued from A. Mi 2612, to the ttreuty-firH vcar of Samuel's judicature^ when Saul was anointed, A. M. l29l29, thai is, about 3 If years [q]. Thee period i'tated in the book, if computed in fuccefiion, would ivvell to a much greater number of years; but they mult be conceived fometimes to coincide as contemporary, being reckoned from dif- ferent aeras which cannot now be exactly afcertained; and, perhaps, as Marfhain has conjectured, fome [o] St. Paul appears to reckon 450 years from the divifion of the land till the time of Samuel, (exclusive of Samuel's government, which is reckoned under the 40 years affigned in the next verfe to Saul) but as this computation would be in- confiftent with other ftatements in fcripture, and efpecially with that in 1 Kings vi. 1. where the fourth year of Solomon's reign is made to coincide with the 480th year after the deliver- ance from Egypt, Ufher accepts from ancient manufcripts a different reading of Acls xiii. 20. according to which the 450 years are referred, not to the duration of the Judges, but to the period which intervened between the promife of Canaan made to Abraham, and the divifion of the land. The prefent read- ing, however, is more agreeable to the fcope of St. Paul's difcourfe, as well as beft fupported by authority ; and there- fore various other folutions of the difficulties that refult from this account, have been propofed. Many chronologers have imagined that TU(xy.r,a-\oi; is a miftake of the copyifl of the Acls, for rpiixftoenajs ; in which cafe St. Paul, fpeaking loofely (a;), might well reckon 350 years; for if we deduct from 480 ytr.rs the 47 years which intervened between the Exodus and the divifion of the land, together with the 84 years which muft be affigned to Samuel, Saul, David, and Solomon, before the foundation of the temple, we (hall have exactly 349 years. Vid. Ulfer. Chron. Sac. c. xii. Poli Synop. in 1 Kings vi. j. Of OF THE liOoiv OF JLDCL5. ]J7 of the Judges were coeval, reigning over different diftricts. The book of Judges furniilies a lively defcription of a. fluctuating and unfettled nation ; a itriking pic- ture of the diibrders and dangers which prevailed in a republic without magiitracy, when "the highways were unoccupied, and the travellers walked through by-ways [it]," when few prophets were appointed to control the people [s], and " every one did that which was right in his own eyes [t]." It exhibits the conteft of true religion with l'uperitition ; dis- plays the beneficial effects that flow from the for- mer ; and represents the miferies and evil confe- quences of impiety. From the icenes of civil dif- cord and violence which darken this hifiory, St Paul, or the author of the Epiitle to the Hebrews, hath preiented us with fome illuitrious examples of faith in the characters of Gideon, Barak, Sainton, and Jephthah [u]. Amidst the great viciffitude of events delcribed in this book, in which the juftice and mercies of God are confpicuouily ihewn, we are much ftruck with the account of the illuftfioirs exploits of the Judges : of Sifera's defeat and death; of the victory of Gi- deon ; of the punifhment of Abimelech ; of Jeph- thah 's inconiiderate vow [x] ; of the action3 of Sainton . [r] Chap. v. 6. [s] We read but of two prophets in this book. Vid. chap. iv. 4. and vi. 8. The high-prieft, however, had the power of confulting God by means of the Uriai and Thummira. [t] Chap. xvii. 6. [u] Heb. xi. 32. {x] It has been a fubjeft of endlefs controrerfy, whethei Jephthah did really offer up hii daughter " a burnt- offering to "the 158 OF THE BOOK OF JUDGES. Samfon; of the flagitious conduct of the Benjamites; of the deftruction of Gibeah ; with the defcription of many other particulars that enliven the narrative, which is likewiie much embelliihed by the beautiful fong of Deborah and Barak, and the fignificant pa- rable of Jotham. Many of the facred writers, as well as St. Paul, allude to, or quote from, the book [y]; and feveral relations contained in it point the Lord," or only devote her to perpetual virginity, which might be confidered as a facrifice, when every woman looked forward to the production of the promifed feed. The Jews and primitive church believed, that he did actually immolate her. Iri favour of this opinion, it has been obferved, that it is fup- ported by the conftruclion of the Septuagtnt, Syriac, and Vul- gate veriibns, and by the Chaldee paraphrafe ; that if the' vow ■ext.nded not to the life, Jephthah might have " gone back ";" Levit. xxvii. z — 8. That a devotion to celibacy was uncuftomary among the Jews, and mull have been difhonourable ; that it could not have been requilite in a dedication to God's fervice, nor a fufiieient lubjecl for that general lamentation which prevailed on the occafion, and was continued with fuperftitious obfervance till later times ; and, laftly, that if Jephthah efteemed himfelf bound to give up every confideration, rather than violate a folemn engagement with God, he might, for his intention, or general character, be commended by St. Paul, however cenfura. ble and extravagant his promife and the performance of it might have been. See Heb. xi. Pfa. xv. 4. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. V. c. 9. Tertul. adv. Marcion. Chryfoft. Horn, de Jeptha. Epiphan. adv. Ha?res. Lib. III. vol. i. p. 1055. & Dodwell. Dr. Randolph propofes by a new rendering of the text, to maintain that Jephthah vowed to dedicate whatfoever or whomfoever came out of the door of his houfe, to meet him ; and alfo, to offer a burnt offering. See his Difcourfe, and on Levit. xxvii. 28, 29. Concerning the Cherem, fee Selden dc Jure. Nat. & Gent. c. 6, 7. [y] 1 Sam. xii. 9 — 11. 2 Sam. xi. 21. Pfa. lxxxviii. 11. Ifaiah ix. 4. x. 26. and perhaps Matt. ii. 23. comp. with Jud. xiii. 5. 9 out OF THE BOOK OF JUDGES. J 59 book [y] ; and feveral relations contained in it point out the origin of numberlels heathen fables [zj. The whole period is diftinguiihed by a dil'play of extraordinary events, and by the molt glaring and miraculous proofs of divine interpofition. The hii- tory of Gods government mult neceilarily be cha- racterized by the marks and demonstrations of his immediate agency ; and the feleered inftruments of his will may well be expected to exhibit a fucceffion of unprecedented exploits. It lhould be obferved, indeed, that fome of the actions, which in this book are reprefented to have been fubfervient to God's defigns, were juftifiable only on the fuppofition of divine warrant, which fuperfeded all general rules of conduct [a]. With- out this, the deeds of Ehud [b] and of Jael [c] [y] i Sara. xii. 9 — 11. 2 Sam. xi. 21. Pfa. lxxxviii. 11. Ifaiah ix. 4. x. 26. and perhaps Matt. ii. 23. cornp. with Jud, xiii. 5. [zj The ftory of Nifus's hair; of the golden hair given by Neptune to his grandfon Pterela, which rendered him invincible while uncut ; that of Hercules and Omphale ; of the pillars of Hercules ; of the death of Cleomedes Aitypalasus ; cf Agamemnon and Iphigenia ; and to enumerate no more, that of the Sabine rape, appear to have been ingenious fictions fabricated from the accounts of this book. [a] God unqueftionably may authorife what without his fanclion would be unjuft ; as where he commands the Ifraeliies " to fpoil the Egyptians,'' and to extirpate the nations of Ca- naan. Vid. Exod. iii. 22. Deut. xx. 10 — 18. [b] We are not to conceive, becaufe God " raifed up the judges," that he directed them in all their actions. The rela- tion, however, feems to intimate, that Ehud on this occafion acted by divine authority. [c] Jael's conduct, like that of Rahab, as defcribed in the book 160 OF THE BOOK OF JUDGED. miixht be pronounced cenfurable for their treachery, however prompted by commendable motives. And with reipeel to Tome other particulars, it is obvious, that the iacred author by no means vindicates all that he relates ; and that the indifcriminatc maflaere of the people of Jabeili-Gilead, and the rape of the virgins at Shiloh, were certainly ftamped with the marks of injuftice and cruelty ; and muft be con- demned on thole principles which the tcriptures have eliewhere furnifhed, though in the brevity of the facred hiftory they are here recorded without com- ment. The characters, likewife, of God's appointed minifters, however ipoken of in this book, and in other parts of fcripture, as commendable for their general excellence, or particular merits, are pre- sented to us in lbme points of view, as highly de- fective and blaineable. It is eafy, however, to dis- criminate the (hades from the light, and to perceive, that in the defcription of inch mixed characters as that of Samfon, much is detailed as reprchenfiblc ; and while we are led to admire his heroic patriotiiYu, we are taught alio to condemn his criminal infatua- tion and blind confidence in Delilah. With refpeft to thole objections, which a mif- taken levity has fuggefted againft the credibility of book of Jofhua, appears to have arifen from a defire of aflifting in God's declared defigns iii favour of his chofen people. As the exploit is approved in the hymn of Deborah, an infpired pro. phetefs, we may fuppofe it to have been performed in compliance with a divine impulfe, other wife it could not have been a fubjed of praife. Some, however, have thought, that Deborah only foretels Jael's fecular happinefs and future celebrity. fome OF THE BOOK OF JUDGES. lGl fome tranfactions recorded in the book, they proceed either from a want of attention to thole conitruCtions which the refearches of the learned have enabled them to make [d] ; or from a difregard to the cha- racter of the times defcribed, when a boundlefs en- thufiafm refulted from a confidence in the divine favour. [d] The relation, for inftance, of Samfon's fetting lire to the corn of the Philiftines, cannot reafonably be questioned by thofe who confider the character of Samfon ; and the great abundance of foxes (or thocs or jackals) that prevailed in Judsea, which, in-, deed, was fo remarkable, that many cities, and even provinces, were denominated after the word which we tranflate foxes. Vid. i Sam. xiii. 17. Join. xv. 28. xix. 42. Judg* i. 35. alfo Cantic. ii. 15. Some writers, indeed, think that inftead of fchualim, faxes, we fhould read fchoalim, Jbea] ; notwith- standing which, lb me Jewifh writers iuppole the hi f- tory to have occurred much earlier, in the time of Ehud [f]. The chief difficulty which occurs in fettling the chronology of this period, ariies from a genealogical account of St. Matthew [g], in which it is ftated that Boaz, who was the hulband of Ruth, and the great grandfather of David [n], was the (un of Salmon by Rachab ; for if by Rachab we iuppole to be meant, as is ufually underftood, Rahab [i], the harlot, who protected [d] Patrick, in ehap. i. i. [e] Judges vi. 3 — 6. [f] Seder Olam. cap. xii. [g] Matt. i. 5;, 6. [h] Ruth iv. 21, 22. and Matth, i. 5, 6. [1] We cannot now difcover any motive which {hould have induced St. Matthew to mention Rachab in the genealogy of Chrift, unlefs ihe were iome perfon previoufly fpoken of in fcripture ; but many reafons may be affigned why me (hould be introduced in the lineage, if ihe were the Rahab whofc conduct is mentioned by Jofhua, (and who, though ltiied riJlT, zonah, in the Hebrew, and oropw?, by the evangelifts, is cele- brated as an example of faith), Hill, however, it may be diffi- dently fuggefted, that the chronological differences would be lefs confiderable, if we could fuppofe her to have been a dif- ferent perfon ; and that the 400 years which intervened be- tween the birth of Pharez, and the time of Shamgar, were filled up by Boaz and his fix immediate anceflors. As a flight fupport to which, it may be remarked, that the wife of Sal- mon is fpelt Pap^aS by St. Matthew, whereas in Hebrews xi. 31. and in James ii. 25. the harlot's name is written P««£, as M 2 in l6l OF THE Lf OK OF RUTH. protected Joihua's fpies, about A. M. 2552, it is difficult to conceive that only three perfons, Boaz, Obed, and JeiVe, Ihould have intervened between her and David, who was not born till about 291 9. We muff, however, in this cafe conclude, either with the learned Ufher, that the anceftors of David, as eminent for righteoufnefs, or as defigned to be confpicuous, becaufe in the lineage of the Meffiah, were blefled with extraordinary length of life [k] ; or elle that the facred writers mentioned in the genealogy only fuch names as were diftinguifhed and known among the Jews. If however Boaz be confidered as the grandfather of David, the hiftory cannot well be affigned to the time of Eli [l], under whofe pontificate it is ftated to have happened by Joiephus [m], but mould be underftood to have come to pais at fome earlier period ; not fo far back as Shamgar, where Ufher has placed it in the 268th in the feptuagint verfion of Jofhua ii. i. There is no mention in the Book of Jofnua, or in any part of the Old Teflament, of Rahab's marriage with Salmon. [r] Uffer. Chron. Sac. cap. xii. Poli Syr.op. in Ruth. And in Matt. i. 5. Patrick, Whitby, &c. [h] The famine which occafioned Naomi to rcfide ten years in Moab, could not have come to pafs fo late as in the days of Eli, from the tenth year of whofe judicature to the birth of David were only forty years. Vid. Ruth i. 1,4. Acts xiii. 2i. 2 Sam. v. 4. for we cannot fuppofe fo fhort a fpacc ol time only as thirty-nine or forty years to have intervened be- tween the birth of Obcd and that of his grandfon David, who was the younger! of eight fons of Jefle. Vid. 1 Sam. xvi. 10, 11. [m] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. V. c. II. rear OF THE EOOK OF RUTH. 1G5 tear of the world, about 133 after the conqueft of Canaan, but probably about the year 2754 [x]. The book has been by fome confidered as the pro- duction of Hezekiah; by others it has been attributed to Ezra ; but it was in all probability written by Samuel, agreeably to the opinion of many Jews and Christians [o] ; and the prophet may be luppofed by this addition to the Book of Judges, to have brought down the hiftory to the time of his own birth. It certainly was written not only after the Judges had ceafed to rule, but after the birth, if not after the anointing of David [p]; whole defcent from Judah the facred writer leems to have defigned to certify, as ac- cording to the prophecy of Jacob, the Mefiiah was to fpring from that tribe [q] ; and with this view he traces back the lineage of Boaz to Pharez, the fon of Judah [r], and grandfon of Jacob [s]. The book contains an account of the converfion of Ruth, a Moabitefs, and according to J e with tradition, of the royal race of Moab, which nation was de- fended from Lot [t], and fettled near the land of Judah, at the end of the fait lea. Ruth having mar- [n] Chron. Sac. Par. I. c. xii. Du Pin, Lightfoot, &c. [o] Talmud, Schalfch. Abarb. Brentius, Huet. Drufius, Pa- trick, &c. [p] Chap. i. i. iv. 22. It is probable, that David was not pointed out as an objed of attention to the facred hiftorians tilj he was felecled for the throne. [oj Gen. xlix. 10. [r] Gen. xxxviii. 29. £s] Gen. xxix. 35. £t] Gen. xix. 37. M 3 ried 166 OF TpE BOOK OF PUTH. ried Mahlon, the ion of Elimelech, who had fo- journed in Moab, on account of a famine which prevailed in Judaea, reiblved, on the death of Mahlon, to accompany her mother-in-law in the return to her country. As Mahlon was of the houfe of Judah, Ruth relied probably on the promifes made to that tribe, and had certainly become a profelyte to the Hebrew religion [u]. After their arrival at Beth- lehem, the former refidence of Naomi, Ruth was compelled, by her diftrefs, to claim kindred with Boaz, who, as the law of Mofes directed [x], took her to wife, and begat a fon, from whom David de- fended. It maybe here obferved, that the Holy Spirit, by recording the adoption of a Gentile woman into that family from whieh (Thrift was to derive his origin, might intend to intimate the comprehcnfive defign of the chriftian difpenfation [y]. It mult be remarked, alio, that in the eftimatiort of the Jews it was difgraceful to David to have de- rived his birth from a Moabitefs; and Shimei, in his [u] Cap. i. 16. [x] The ancient law ratified by Mofcs in Deut. xxv. 5. is fuppofed to have applied only to the brother, or according to the Rabbins, only to the elder brother by the fame father. Cuftom, however, feems to have extended the obligation of marrying the widow of the deceafed to the next of kin. Vid. Ruth i. 13. Boaz was only a kinfman of Elimelech, and by his marriage with Ruth, he fulfilled the law in its extended interpretation, as well as that in Levit. xxv. 24, 25. Vid. Selden. de Succefs. in bona, c. xv. Uxor. Hebr. Lib. c. xii. [y] Gen. xlix. 10. revilings OF THE BOOK OF RUTH. 16"? revilings againit him, is fuppofed by the Jews to have tauntingly reflected on his deicent from Ruth. This book, therefore, contains an intrinfic proof of its own verity, inafmuch as it records a circumftance i'o little flattering to the fovereign of Ifrael [z] ; and it is fcarce neceffary to appeal to its admifilon into the canon of fcripture for a teftimony of its au- thentic character ; or to mention that the evange- lifts, in defcribing our Saviour's deicent, follow its genealogical accounts [a]. The ftory related in this book is extremely in- ter©ftins: : — the widowed diitrefs of Naomi ; her af- O 7 feclionate concern for her daughters; the reluctant departure of Orpah; the dutiful attachment of Ruth; and the forrowful return to Bethlehem, are very beautifully told. The (implicity of manners, like- wife, which is fhewn in the account of Ruth's in- duftry and attention to Naomi; of the elegant cha- rity of Boaz [b] ; and of his acknowledgment of his kindred with Ruth, affords us a very pleating contrail to the turbulent fcenes which had been defcnbed in the precedent book. The refpecl;, likewife, which the Israelites paid to the Mofoic law [c\ and their [z] Hieron. in Tradit. Heb. ad i Kings iii. Calmct's Pre- face to Ruth, and Ruth iv. 22. [a] Matt. i. 3 — 6. Luke iii. 32, 33. [b] Chap. ii. 16. HowePs Hift. of Bible, vol. i. Eook IV. and Thomfon's Palemon and Lavinia. Strangers were allowed to glean by the charitable precepts of the Mofaic Law* Vid. Levit. xix. 9, 10. Deut. xxiv. 19, [cj Chap, iv, 5, 10. Buxtorf. de Sponfal. & Divorr* fed. 27. M 4 obfervance 168 01 THE BOOK OF RUTH. obfervance of ancient cuftoms [d], are reprefented in a very lively and animated manner. St. Jerom has remarked, that Ruth in her wandering condition, verified the prophecy of Ilaiah, who predicted that the " daughters of Moab should be as a wandering bird caft out of the neft [eJ," [d] Chap. iv. 7. The form of redemption here referred to was apparently different from the degrading ceremony obferved towards him who rejected his brother's wife, as enjoined in Deut. xxv. 9. though Jofephus conceives that it was the fame concifely defcribed, Antiq. Lib. V. c. xi. The Chaldee paraphrafe re- prefents the kinfman to have drawn off his right, hand glove, in- Head of his ihoe. The mark of transfer among the more modern Jews was an handkerchief, as R. Solomon Jarchi informs us, Vid. Selden de Jure, Nat. & Gent. Juxt. Difc. Heb. c. v. Vid, ^lib Ruth iv. 1 1. and Seld. Uxor. Heb. Lib. II. c. xii,' [e] Ifa. xvi. 2. Hieron, Epift, ad Paulin, or [ 169 ] OF THE FIRST BOOK of SAMUEL. THE relations contained in the Book of Ruth were a kind of digreffion in the f acred hiftory, with a particular view ; but the general thread is now refumed refpecting the Judges of Ifrael ; and we are furniihed in this, and in the following Book, with an- account of the events and occurrences which hap- pened in the time of the two laft Judges, Eli and Samuel ; and of the two firft Kings, Saul and David. It is uncertain whether thefe books are called the books of Samuel, becaufe he was the author of them, or only becaufe his hiftory conftitutes a principal part of the facred account. They are in the Vulgate [a] ftiled [a] The Vulgate was a very ancient verfion of the Bible into Latin, but by whom, or at what period it was made, is not known. The Old Teftament of this verfion was tranflated from the Septuagint. It was in general ufe till the time of St. Jerom, and called alfo the Italic verfion. St. Jerom's tranflation was made immediately from the Hebrew into Latin, or was the Vulgate corrected by the Hebrew ? It was executed about A. D. 384, and it was gradually received into the Weftern Church, in preference to all preceding verfion?. It was publiihed at Paris, by i?0 OF THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL itiled the firft and fecond Book of Kings [b], as two of thole four books which contain the hiitory of the Kings of Ifrael and Judah. The two books of Samuel were in the Hebrew canon confidered but as one. The Talmudifts [c] iuppofc that Samuel wrote the twenty- four firft chapters of the firft book, and that the reft was furniiTied by the prophets Gad and Nathan. This opinion is founded upon thefe words in the firft book of Chronicles [d]. " "Now the acts of David the king, firft and laft, behold they are written in the book of Samuel the feer, and in the book of Nathan by Martianay and Pouget, in 1695. The prefent Vulgate, which is declared authentic by the Council of Trent, is the an- cient Italic verfion, revifed and improved by the labours of St. Jerom and others. This is the only tranflation allowed by the church of Rome, and it is ufed by that church upon all eccafions, excepting that, in the Miflal and Pfalms, fome paflages, or the whole of the ancient Vulgate, are retained, as are the Apocry- phal Books, many of which St. Jerom did not tranflate. There art- two principal editions of the received Vulgate, one publifhed by Pope Sixtus the Fifth, in 1590, the other by Clement the Eighth, which differs much from the former, though both are declared authentic from the Papal Chair, with much inconfift- ency, as the Proteibints contend, but as the Papilts maintain only with the latitude of a corrected impreflion. Vide Kenni- cott's State of the printed Hebrew Text, and James's Bellam. Papale, and Treatife on the Corruption of Scripture. Some parts of the ancient Italic verfton, of which the copies are now loft, have been recovered from citations in the writings of the Fathers, and is publifhed with fupplementary additions, in Walton's Po- lyglot. [b] Thefe and the two fucceeding books are called in the Greek I3xzwj, the books " of kingdom;." [c] Bava Bathra, crip. i. Kimchi. [d] 1 Chron. xxix. 29. the OF THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL. 171 the prophet, and in the book of Gad the feer ;" and it is approved by many writers of confiderablc authority [e] ; who maintain that the prophets were^ the hiftorians of contemporary events. It will ap- pear evident, at leaft, that the books of Samuel were written before e;ther the books of Kings or of Chro- nicles, if we l ^pare them together ; for in each of tlieie laft-memioned books many circumftances are manifeftly taken and repeated from the books of Samuel. We may therefore alien t to the general opinion, that Samuel was the author of at leaft the greater part of the firit book [f] ; and probably he compofed it towards the latter end of his life [g]. Certain, however, it is, from its admiffion to the canon, as well as from the predictions which it con- [e] Huet. Demonft. Evang. Prop. IV. Ifid. Orat. Lib. VI. chap. ii. R. Kimchi, Sec. [k] Procopius Gazaeus informs us, that the Syrians call the book the prophecy of Samuel. [g] Chap. v. 5. vi. 18. xxx. 25. ix. 9. In this laft paflage Samuel incidentally obferves, that they who in his time and in that of Saul, were called prophets, were anciently denominated feers. The word prophet, (Nabi) was in ufe, indeed, in the time of Mofes or Abraham. Vid. Gen. xx. 7. But it then only implied a man favoured of God ; whereas in the time of Samuel, it was appropriated to one who forefaw future events. Vid. 1 Sam. iii. 20. x. 5. xix. 24. In the latter part of Samuel's life, the word feer m ght have become nearly obfolete, though occa- fionally ufed in, and after his time. But perhaps this remark might have been afterwards inferted for the inftruftion of later times, as poffibly were fomc few other particulars. Vid. vii. 15. '.'.'1. 5. xxvii. S. tains, 1/2 OF THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL. tains, that the book was the production of a pro- phet ; not to mention that it is referred to by our Saviour, in vindication of his difciples [h]. The tint book of Samuel contains a fpace of near eighty years, if we reckon from the birth of Samuel, about or loon after A. M. 286'8, to the death of Saul which happened A.M. 2948. The hiftory opens with an account of the birth of Samuel. It defcribes his confecration to the miriif- try, and his appointment to the prophetic office ; the capture of the ark ; and the completion of God's judgments on the houfe of Eli ; the curfe on thofe who poffefied the ark ; its return, and the fignal punifhment of fuch as daringly prophanedits fanctity [i]; the election of Saul in conformity to the un- advifed defire of the Ifraelites for a King [k] ; the wars. [h~] Comp. i Sam. xx. 16. with Matt. xii. 3, 4. [1] Chap. vi. 19. The text, as it now ftands, reprefents 50,070 men of Bethfhemeih to have been fmitten upon this occafion for the prefumptuous violation of God's exprefs com- mand. Vid. Numb. iv. 20. But the original words are more properly tranflated by Bochart : " He fmote threefcore and ten men, fifty out of a thoufand men ;" that is, the number being 1400, God fmote 70, a twentieth part. Jofephus underftood the paffage thus ; and it muft be obferved, in fupport of this in. terpretation, that Eethfhemefh was but a village. Vid. Patrick on 1 Sam. vi. 19. , [k] The impropriety of this requeft will be more obvious, f we recolleft that God had condefcended to be held in the chara$er of a temporal King to the Ifraelites, refiding, as it were, among them, and iffuing his decrees from the Ta- bernacle ; to require a King was therefore to rejecl his Theocracy , OF THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL. \~3 wars and evils which arolc, as had been foretold [l], in coniequence of this change of government ; the fins and rejection of Saul ; the anointing David, and the mil difplay of his piety and heroil'm [m] : the difinterefted friendihip of Jonathan and David ;. the envious and ungenerous lufpicions of Saul ; the death of Samuel ; the appearance of his fpirit. [n], denouncing God's judgments againlt the im- piety Theocracy. Vid. chap. viii. 7. xii. iz. Jofeph. cont. Apion. Lib. II. [l] Chap. viii. 11 — 18. [m] The character of David is very beautifully delineated by the facred writer, and his actions are placed before us in a manner well calculated to produce effect. He is firft introduced to our notice as " a valiant and prudent man," anointed on the rejection of Saul ; and the hiftorian then goes back to relate an achieve- ment of David's " youth;" for it appears that the combat with Goliah was previous in point of time to the driving away of the evil fpirit of Saul, otherwife Saul and Abner mull have known " whofe fon the {tripling was ;" and therefore the feventeenth chapter records particulars prior in point of chronology to thofe related in the fixteenth chapter. Vid. Warburt. Div. Legat. B. IV. feci. 6. note E. Such anticipations are not uncuftomarv in the facred writings, and they give much animation to the hillory ; and the narration fhould be read in the following order : ch. xvii. xviii. 9. xvi. 14 — 23. Some writers, however, confider the 39 verfes which are omitted in the Vatican copy of the Sep- tuagint, as an interpolation introduced into the Hebrew text, and the Alexandrian copy of the Greek verfion. [h] Chap, xxviii. The moft probable and belt fupported opinion concerning this relation is, that God fufFered SamuelV departed fpirit, or a miraculous reprefentation of his perfon, to appear to Saul, and, as a punifhment for his prefumptuous impiety, *o difclofe his impending fate. The text pofitively calls him Samuel, (" himfelf," in the original) jufd %e propheued truly; for 174 OF THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL piety of Saul; in the accomplifliment of which the book terminates, with the account of the miferable fate of Saul, and of his foils. The facred writer illuftrates the characters, and deicribes the events of hie hiftory in the moft engaging manner. The weak indulgence of Eli is well contrafted with the firm piety of Samuel. The rifing virtues of David, and the fad depravity of Saul, are ftri kingly oppoled. The fentiments and iuftruttions Scattered through the work are excellent ; and the infpired hymn of Hannah, which much refembles that of the blcifed Virgin [o], furnimes us with a grand prophecy of Chrift, who is here for the fifft time in fcripture de- fcribed as the Meffiah [p], or the anointed of the Lord ; as the exalted fovereign and appointed judge of the earth. Samuel, the reputed author of this book, was obtained by the prayers of Hannah [q], and dedi- cated from his infancy to God. He appeared as a for " on the morrow," that is, foon after, Saul and his fons were flain, and the hofl; of Ifrael defeated. The woman was herfelf terrified at a real appearance, when probably (lie defigned a deception, and was preparing her incantations. Vid. Ecclus xlvi. 20. Calmet. Diflert. Pref. to 1 Sam. Note in Sept. 1. 1 Chron. x. 13. Juftin Maityr, Dial. Tryphon, and Commen- tators. [o] Com. 1 Sam. ii. 1 — 10. with Luke i. 46 — 55. [p] 1 Sam. ii. 10. The Meffiah and the anointed, are fynonymous. mirn, Mafcuach, is derived from nu>n, Mafchach, to anoint. [q] The word Samuel, according to the Hebrew derivation, implies one defired of God. g prophet OF THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL. 175 pi ophet at a time when the prophetic ipirit was but rarely known ; he accepted the iupreme power in the government of his country [a] without ambition, and executed the important duties of his office with irreproachable integrity. When required by God, he refigned his power without reluclance ; and in compliance with the divine commands, elected two (tranters in the government, to the exclulion of his ions. He was much feared and refpected by Saul, and the whole nation ; and was allowed by that monarch to judge Ilrael " all the days of his life [$]." The author of Eccleiiafticus jultly celebrates iiiiu as a favourite fervant of God, a righteous judge, and a faithful prophet [t]. He was addreiied by many revelations from God [u] ; and the miraculous circumttances that demonftrated his appointment, as well as the prophetic ipirit which infpired him, were [r] Some deny that Samuel fucceeded to the priefthooil, as he was not of the pofterity of Aaron, and affert that he only fuc- ceeded to the judicature. Vid. Hieron. cont. Jovin. Lib. I. and in Pfa. xcviii. others maintain that he was dignified with both characters. Vid. Auguft. in Pfal. xcviii. He is not reckoned in the catalogue of priefts given by Jofephus. Vid. Selden de Succeff. ad Pontiff. Lib. I. cap. xiv. [s] i Sam. vii. 15. Patrick obferves that this verfe may mean, that Samuel was fo diKgent in the difcharge of his office, that he gave himfelf no reft, but fat to judge caufes every day. Some confider it as a fubfequent interpolation. Samuel may be fjjppofed to have died about two years before Saul, in the ninety- eighth year of his age. [t] Ecclus xlvi. 13 — 20. [u] Chap. hi. Pfa. xcix. 6, 7. Acts hi. 24. fo 176 OF THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMtfEl. fo conspicuous, " that all Ifrael, from Dan to Beer- fheba, knew that Samuel was eftablrfhed to be a prophet of the Lord, who let none of his words fall to the ground." His firft predictions concerning the deftruction which impended over the houfe of Eli were literally completed [x], and thefe were followed by others which came to pals with ftriking exactnefs [y]. [x] Chap. iii. ii — iS. Vid. alfo Chap. ii. 34, 35. which contain prophecies that were verified in Zadock and his predecef- for Abiathar, but which were more fully accomplifhed in Chrift, the great high-prieft " for ever." Vid. 1 Kings i. 39. ii, 2'6, 27. 1 Chron. xxix. 22. Heb. v. 10. [y] Chap. viii. n — 18. x. 2 — 9. xii. 25. xxviii. 19. OF [ 177 ] OF THE SECOND BOOK of SAMUEL, IF we aflent to the opinion of the Talmudifts, that Samuel did not continue the hiftory beyond the twenty-fourth chapter of the Firft Book of Samuel, we may afiign this Second Book, as well as the latter part of the former, to the prophets Gad and Nathan. Many learned Jews have contended, from a fanciful refemblance of ftile between thefe and the works of Jeremiah, that this prophet compiled them from the memoiis of Samuel, Gad, and Nathan [a]. We may conclude then, either that they were written en- tirely by Samuel, or partly by him, and finilhed by fome of thole infpired perfons that iiTued from the fchools of the prophets, which he is fuppoled to have eitabliflied. Thefe were colleges for the inftruftion of felecl youths in the knowledge of the law, and [a] Bava Bathra, Abarbinel, Grotius, and Locke. In 2 Mace. ii. 13. it is faid, that Nehemiah gathered together the a&s of David, with other writings ; which perhaps means only that he collected them for the library which he is there faid to have founded. N the 17-3 OF THE SFXON'D BOOK OF SAMUEL. the exercife of devotions [jj]. Upon many of thefe difciples God conferred the Ipirit of prophecy; and probably moft of the fubfequent prophets were elect- ed from thefe fchools [c] ; not, indeed, neceffarily, but becaufe therein fitted and prepared for the facred influence. They were under the direction of a pro- phet really infpired, who was confidered as a father to the ibciety; and Samuel was probably the rirlt who poiTeiTed that dignified character [d]. This Second Book of Samuel bears an exact re- lation to the preceding hiftory, and is likewife con- nected with that which fucceeds. We fee through- out the effects of that enmity againit other nations which had been implanted into the minds of the 'Israelites by the Mofaic Law, and which gradually tended to the extirpation of idolatry. The hiftory contains a period of near forty years, from about A. M. £948 to 2988. It defcribes the eltabliuiment and prosperity of David's reign; which he deferred, as well by his generous refpect. for the memory of Saul, as by the excellency of thofe many other qualities which his maturer piety difplayed. It relates the extinction of Saul's family, and David's grateful and unfufpicious kindnefs to the furviving [a] 1 Sam. x. 5. [c] For Amos informs us, that he was not, chap. vii. 1^ It was likewife proverbially faid, " Is Saul alfo among the pro- phets ?" Is he raifed to a dignity to which he was not difcipliried by his education ? £6] Whitby's School of the Prophets :, Smith's Difcourfe on Propliecv. fon OF THE SECOXD BOOK OF SAM C EL. 179 Ton of Jonathan. The infpired author then records the fall of David; and exhibits a fad proof of the unconicious depravity to which the nobleit minds may be feduced by pafiion. He reprefents to us God's anger ibftened, but not appealed, by David's repentance, who was foon after punifhed by the death of the child, and many domeftic calamities. Thetranfgrellion of Amnion was the firftconfeqiience of his bad example; and " evil role up again ft him out of his own houfe [e]," in the ambitions intrigues and rebellion of Abfalom. We foon behold him a degraded and fugitive fovereisn, reviled bv his mean- eft fubjects ; and feverely punifhed for his conduct toward Uriah, by the inceftuous outrage of his fon [fJ. The fubmifiive repentance, however, and re- ftored virtues of David, procured his pardon and re- eftablifhment on his throne ; which he dignified by the difplay of the greateft moderation, juftice, and piety. If in the exultation of his recovered prof- perity, God fuffered him [g] to be betrayed into an oftentatious numbering of the people, " his heart fmote him" to immediate repentance, and he pioufly threw himfelf on God's mercy, and intreated that he only might fuffer from the indignation which he had provoked. The viciffitude of events which the book defcribes ; the fall and reftoration of David ; the effects of his errors, and his return to righteouf- nefs, are reprefented in the moft interefting manner, [_e] Nathan's prophetic threat, chap. xii. u. [f] Chap. xvi. 21, 22. [g] Chap. xxiv. 1. and 1 Chrqn. xxi. 1. N 2 and t$Q OI THE SECOND BOOK OF SAMUEL. and furnifh valuable lelTbns to mankind. The au- thor in the concife ftile of iacred hiftory, ielecls only the moftftriktng features of character ; and the moft important incidents of thofe revolutions of which he treats; and among the confpicuous beauties of the book, we can never fufficiently admire the feeling lamentation over Saul and Jonathan [h] ; the ex- preilive parable of Nathan; and the triumphant hymn of David. The prophecies contained in the book are, firft, that which blended temporal and fpiritual blefiings in the promifes relative to Solomon and the Mefliah; the permanency of Davids throne, and the perpe- tuity of that kingdom, which is prefigured [i]. Se- condly, the predictive denunciations of Nathan [k]; and, laftly, the figurative defcriptions of David's pfalai [l] ; by whom the " fpirit of the Lord fpake,!> alluring him of an everlasting covenant [m]." This book, likewile, as well as the former, con- tains other intrinfic proofs of its verity. By de- ferring without difguife the mifconduct of thole cha- [aj Tliis fong is fuppofed to have been fung at the funeral of Saul and Jonathan ; it being cuftomary among the Jews to foiemnize the obfequies of their friends with dirges accompanied by astrfic 2: Chroii. xxxv. 24. Matt. ix. 2j. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib- HI. c. 9. Maim. c. xiv. feEt* 23. £s] Chap. vii. 12, 16. Heb. i. 5. David fcems to have ap- prehended the great extent of God's promifes, and in confequence joliave burit out in rapturous acknowledgment of his goodnefs. x Sam. vii, so, — 21. 1 Chron. xvii. 17. (xj Chap. xri. n — 14. £t] Chap. xxii. [m] Chap, xxiii, 2, 5, meters OF THF SECOND BOOK OF SA3K'£L- rafters, that were highly reverenced among the peo- ple, the iUcred writer demonstrates his impartial fict- cerity; and by appealing to monuments that attested the truth of his relations when he wrote, he fur- "milled every poffible evidence of his faithful ad- herence to truth. The Books of Samuel connect the chain of facred hiftory by detailing the eircum- ftances of an interefting period. They defcribe the reformation and improvements of the Hebrew church eftabliihed by David; and as they delineate minutely the life of that monarch, they point out his typical relation to Chriit; and likewiie illuftrate remark- ably his infpired productions, which are contained in the Book of Pfalms. Many heathen authors have borrowed from the books of Samuel, or have col- lected from other fources many particulars of thofe accounts which he gives [n1. This remark will equally apply to the Books of Kings ; and, indeed, to all the books of facred hiftory [o]. [n] Eupol. ap. Eufeb. Praep. Lib. IX. Nic. Damafc. Lib. IV. Hift, ap. Jofoph. Antiq. Lib. VII. c. vi. [o] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. VIII. cap. ii, Menand. Theoplsr. Lib. III. ad Autol. Eufeb. Prsep.JLib. X. Clem, Alex. Suom. I. N 3 , Qt [ 182 } OF THE FIRST BOOK of KINGS, THIS and the following Book [a] were in the Hebrew canon reckoned but as one. They cannotbepoiitively afiigned to any particular author, though fome have afcribed them to Jeremiah [b], and fome to Ifaiah. There are many, likewife, who contend that they are the production of Ezra • and probably this opinion is molt j Lift, for they appear to be a collection, or hiftorical abridgment, felected from the memoirs and books of the prophets ; which are herein frequently referred to [c], as records, doubtlefs, of contemporary prophets. Thus " the Book of the A els of Solomon," is mentioned in this very book [d], and was probably written by Nathan, [a] The Jews call them the Third and Fourth Book of Kings.. In the time of Origen they denominated them from the firft words " Vammelech David," David the King. Orig. ap Eufeb, Prasp. Lib. VI. c. xi. {b] Bava Bathra, Grotius, Ificlore, Procopius, Kimchi, &c. [c] Diodor. in i Sam. ix. 9. Theodor. Praef. in Lib. Reg. J-Iuet. Propof. iv. [p] Chap. xi. 41. Ahijah OF THE riRST BOOK OF KIXC;:, Ahijah, the Shilonite, and Iddo, the feer [e]. And iience thoie who by the Book, of the Acts of Solo- mon have underftood the Books of Kings, haveiup- pofed that they were eompofed by theie prophets [f] ; but we eliewhere read that Shemaiah the pro- phet was employed with Iddo the feer, in writing the acts of llehoboam [g] ; that the a&s of Abijah were written in the ftory of Iddo [n] ; the book of Jehu the prophet likewife related the acts of King Jehofhaphat [i] ; and Ifaiah wrote the acts of Uzziah [k], of Hezekiah [l], and probably of the two in- termediate King's, Jotham and Ahaz, in whole rcisms lie flourifhed ; lb that we may conclude, that from theie feveral records, as well as from other authentic documents, were compiled the Books of Kings* They appear to have been arranged by one pcrfon, as the ftile and manner are uniform ; and therefore they may with much probability be affigned to Ezra., who pofiibly compiled them during the captivity [m]. The firit book comprifes a period of 1Q6 years, from the death of David, A, M. 2989, to that of [e] 2 Ch/on. ix. 29. [f] Caijetan, Serrarius, &c, [c] 2 Chron. xii. i|. [h] 2 Chron. xiii. 22. [1] 2 Chron. xx. 34. and 1 Kings xvi, 1. [k] 2 Chron. xxvi. 22. [l] 2 Chron. xxxii. 32. and Ifa. xxxvi. xxxvii. xxxviii. and xxxix. where much of He?ekiah's hiftovy is incorporated with. Ifaiah's prophecies. Theodor. Pra-f. in Lib, Reg. [m] The Chaldaic pames by which the months in thefe books are denominated, were not ufed by the Jews till in, or after the captivity. N 4 Jeho- I3F OF THE FIRST BOOK OF KINGS. Jehofhaphat. After the defcription of the decay and death of David, we are presented with a moft itrik- ing hiftory of the reign of Solomon ; of his wifdom and magnificence ; of the building of the temple ; of his extended commerce to Ophir [x] ; and of the vifit of the Queen of Sheba [o]. To this fuc- [n] Various have been the conjectures concerning the fituation of Ophir. Jofephus places it in the Eaft-Indies, in a country which, by his defcription, (hould appear to be Malacca, Bochart contends that it was Taphrobana, or Ceilon. Calmet places it in Armenia, Montanus in America. And Huetius in the eaftern coaft of Africa. As various have been the fentiments with refpect to Tharfhifh, fome confidering it as having been near, and others as diflant from Ophir : all that the fcriptures tell us, is, that the navy of Tharfhifh came in once in three years, and furnifhed Solomon immenfe wealth ; of which we know not the amount, fince we can make no exact eftimate of the value of the talents fpecified ; they were, however, certainly of lefs value than the Mofaic talents. Vid. Prid. Pref. to Con. Bochart. Phaleg. L. II. c. xxvii. Bruce's Travels. Differt. fur le pays d'Optics, Mem. liter, torn. 30. p. 83. [o] The moft learned writers maintain, that the Queen of Sheba came from Yemen, in Arabia Felix She is called by Chrjft, " the Queen of the South," and is laid by him to " have come from the utmoft parts of the earth," as the fouthern part of Arabia was confidered by the ancients. She is fuppofed to have been a descendant of Abraham by Keturah, whofe grandfon Sheba peopled that country. She therefore probably rcforted to Solomon for religious inftruction. Vid. 1 Kings x. 1. and hence our Saviour's encomium, Matt. xii. 42, She is called Balkis by the Arabians. The Ethiopians pretend that fhe was of their country, and many fabulous ftories are told of her by different writers, under the names of Nicaule, Candace, Marqueda, &c. Vid. Ludolph's Hift, of Ethiopia. Dr. Johnfon's Difc. on. Queen of Sheba, vol. xv, Calmet. Diet, under word Nicaule, Teeds OF THE FIRST BOOK OF KINGS. i S5 ceeds an account of the miferable dotage and apof- tacy of Solomon ; and of his death, preceded by a proipect of that threatened rending of the kingdom which iht)uld take place under his ion [p]. After- wards are related the accefnon of Rehoboam ; his rath and impolitic conduct, and the conlequent re- paration of the ten tribes, which happened about A. M. 3029. This is followed by a concile lketch of the hiftory of the two kingdoms, in which particular periods are characterised by very animated relations; as that of the diibbedient prophet ; of the widow of Zarephath ; of Elijah and the prophets of Baal ; of lienhadad s pride and defeat ; of Ahab's injuftice and puniihment. In the courle of thele events, we contemplate the exact accomplihHment of God's pro- miles and threats ; the wifdom of his difpenfations, and the mingled juftice and mercies of his government. The book is ftamped with the intrinfic marks of infpiration : of the prophecies which it contains, fome were fpeedily completed [q], but that which foretold [p] Chap. xi. 11, 12. God is reprefented in fcripture as fometimes (efpecially in cafes of idolatry) " vifiting the ini. quities of the fathers upon the children," when the meafure of guilt was completed ; and in the foreknowledge that their defcendants fhould perfift in evil, God revealed as a punifhment to the difohedienr, thole calamities which awaited their families, It was in the power, however, of thofe who repented, to avert the divine vengeance. Vid. Levit. xxvi. 40 — 42. 1 JCings xxi. 29. [oj Chap. vi. 12. xi. 11 — 13, 30 — 39. xiv. 10, II, 14. xvi. 1 — 4. Jehu, in this laft prophecy, foretold that Gcd would make the houfe of Baafha like that of Jeroboam ; and it defer vej ISO OF THE FIRST BOOK OF KINGS, foretold that " Jofiah ih-ould be born unto the hou fc of David, and flay the high-prieils,-"' was not ful- filled till above 350 years after it was delivered [\i\ Some of its prophetic denunciations were uttered under figurative defcription [s] ; and Micaiah, to il- lustrate the infatuation which God had fullered to prevail in the counfels of Ahaz, that it might miflead him to deftruction ; unfolds to the mifguided monarch the danger of his projected enterprise, under a re- prefentation received in viiion ; in which an imaginary council, and the fuppofed agency of a King fpirit are introduced, in order to explain the divine conduct in fome analogous proceedings [t]. Both the books of Kings are cited as authentic and canonical by our Saviour and his Apoftles [u]. deferves to be remarked, how ' exactly the threat was fulfilled y for as Nadab the fen of Jeroboam reigned two years, fo did Ekh, the fon cf Eaafha ; and both were flain by the fword. Vid. xv. 25 — 28. xvi. 8 — 10. Vid. alfo, for other predi&iqps, chap. xvii. 1. (compared with James v. 17.) xx. 13.XXL 19 — 24. Obferve, that in the nineteenth verfe of the twenty -firft chapter, inflead of in ihe place where, we mould read, in like manner, as the dogs licked Ahab's blcod in Samaria. The prophet points only to the caufe of Ahab's punifnment. Vid. Patrick, &c. [r] Chap. xiii. 1 — 3. compared with 2 Kings xxiii. 15 — 20. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. X. c. v. [s] Chap. xxii. 17. [t] Chap. xxii. 19 — 28. Vid. alfo 2 Kings vi. 17. Job i. 6 — 12. [u] Matt. xii. 42. Luke iv. 25 — 27. AGs vii. 47. Row, xi. 2 — 4. James v. 17, 18. 01 [ 187 j OF THfi SECOND BOOK of KINGS, CONCERNING the author of the Second Book of Kings, it has been treated in the pre- ceding preface ; and it is here only necciVary to re- peat, that the Second was united with the Firft Eook of Kin«;s in the Hebrew canon, and confidered I .t as one with it; and that it was compiled by Ezra, or fome other infpired perfon, from the records of former prophets. The hiftory contained in this Eook records the government and actions of many fucceffive Kings of Judah and Ifrael, for the fpace of about 300 years : from the death of Jehofhaphat, A. M. 3115, to the deftruction of Jerufalem and the temple, A. M. 3416V The connection and occafional quarrels which fub-. filled between the two nations during part of this time, till the conqueft of Samaria by Shahnanezer, feein to have induced the facred writer to blend the two hiftories, as in ibme meafure treating of the fame people. Both nations appear to have departed with almoft equal fteps from the fervice of the true God; aucTin the hiftory of each we are prefented with 18S OF THE SECOND BOOK OF KINGS. with a fucceffion of -wicked and idolatrous Kings, till each had completed the meafure of its iniquity; Both Ii'rael and Judah, though they invariably ex- perienced profperity and affliction in proportion to their obedience or diibbedience, were infatuated by their perverle inclinations; and in a long feries of their refpeeiive lbvereigns we findXJa few only who were awakened by God's judgments to a fenfe of their true intereit and duty. The whole period feems to have been dark and guilty, the glory of the" king- dom being eclipled by the calamities of the divilion ; and by the increafing miferies of idolatry and am- bition. Succefiive tyrannies, trealbns, feditions, and ulurpations, and the inftant puniihment which they produced, ierve at once to illuftrate the evil character of the times, and the vigilant equity of the divine government. The events are defcribed with greatfim- plicity, though in themielves highly interefting and important. The account of Elijah's aflumption into heaven ; of Eliiha's fucceffion to his miniftry ; and of the feries of illuftrious miracles performed by Elifha; the ftory of Naaman ; and of the panic flight of the Syrians; the hiltory of Benhadad andllazael; of the predicted death of Ahab and Jezebel, and their chil- dren ; and of the deftruction of Baal's prophets, are all pregnant with inftruction, and have furnifhed theme for frequent differtation. We perceive in thefe impreflive hiltories the characters and qualities of men, painted with great fidelity ; and the attri- butes of God difplayed with great effe6t. The par- ticulars and cireumftanccs are Iketched out with a brief ©F THE SECONI> BOOK OF KINGS. 189 brief and lively defcription, and the imagination lingers with pleafure in filling up thole itriking out- lines that are prefented to our view. The lacred au- thor, regardlefs of minute order, and of the fuc- celiion of events, feems fometiines deiirous only of furniming us with a view of the ftate of religion -among the people, and of illultrating the genealogy of Chrift In particular, we obferve, how the revolt of the ten tribes and their fubfequent captivity, con- tributed to keep up the diftincuon of the tribe of Judah; and to make the prophecies which foretold that the Meffiah mould defcend from this branch, more confpicuoufly accompliihed. Th e predictions defcribedas delivered and fulfilled in this book, are thole which foretold the death of Ahaziah [a]; the birth of a lbn to the Shunammitc [b] ; the recovery of Naaman [c] ; plenty in Sama- ria [d]; the crimes and cruelty of Hazael [k] ; the fuccefs of Joaih [f]; the defeat of Sennacherib [g] ; the [a] Chap. 1.-16. £b] Chap. iv. 16. l [c] Chap. v. 10. [d] Chap. vii. i. [e] Chap. viii. 10, 12. [f] Chap. xiii. 19. [g] Chap. xix. 6, 7, 28, 29, 33. and Herod. Lib. I. This deftruftion is faid in the Babrlonifh Talmud, and in fome Tar- gums, to have been occafioned by lightning. It might, per- haps, have been effected by the deftructive hot winds (o fre- quent in thofe parts. Vid. Thevenot's Travels, Part. IL, Book I. chap. xx. B. II. ch. xvi. Part I. Book II. ch. xx. Je- remiah calls this a deftroying wind, where the Arabic renders it 190 OF THE SECOND BOOK OF KINGS. the prolongation of Ilezekiah's life [h] ; the Baby-* lonilh captivity [r] ; and the peaceful reign of Jo- fiah [k]. After the captivity of the ten tribes, the colony brought up from Babylon and other places, adopted the Hebrew religion, and blended it with their own idolatries; and henceforward, in point of time, we hear little of the inhabitants of Samaria. The king- dom of Judah ftill continued for above a century to provoke G od's anger by its difobedience and idolatry, notwithstanding Ifaiah and many other prophets con- fpired during all this period to exhort the people to repentance, by every motive of intereft and fear. The good reign of Hezekiah, though lengthened by divine providence, was too ibon fucceeded by the " evil days of jManaifeh," in whole time the temple, and even the volume of the law feem to have been ahnoit entirely neglected. In the reign of Joiiah re- it an hot peftilential wind, chap. li. i. Ifaiah threatens Senna, cherib with •' a blaft," which might be called the angel of the Lord. Ifaiah xxxvii. 7. 2 Kings xix. 7. [h] Chap. xx. 6. [1] Chap. xx. 17, 18. God appears to have revealed to He- zekiah ths calamities which awaited his defcendants in the Baby- loniih captivity, as a punifhment for his oftentatious difplay of his treafures, in which he feemed to confide ; and for not having rather profeffed his confidence in God, whofe mercies he had fo recently experienced. Thefe prophecies, and thofe in the en- fuing chapters relative to the fame captivity, were literally ful- filled above 100 years after. Vid. chap. xxi. 12 — 14. xxiii. 27. compared with ch. xxiv. 13. and Dan. i. 1 — 6. [k] Chap. xxii. 20. 9 ligion OF THI .SECOND EOOK OF KINGS. 191 ligion for a ihort time revived ; the public copy of the law was difcovered, and read [l], and idolatry for a few months fuppreffed ; but the tide of iniquity hav- ing rolled back with accumulated force, Jerufalcm is belieged and taken, the city and temple fpoiled, and the nobleitof the nation led captive to Babylon. The book concludes with the account of the fecond fiege by Nebuchadnezzar, which happened about eighteen years after the firft ; then the city and temple [m] were burnt, and foon after the whole deftruclion completed by the maifacre, or flight of the remnant which had been left amidft the ruined cities of Judaea. [l] Chap. xxii. 8. xxiii. -2. [m] According to Ufher's computation, the temple was burnf about 4.24 years after it was built. Jofephus, who conceives it to have been burnt 470 years, 6 months, and 10 days from the time of its building, obferves with aitonifhment, that the fecond temple was burnt by the Romans in the fame month, and on the-fame day of the month that the firft temple was fet on fire by the Chal- deans ; and the Jewifh doclors add, with as little truth, that the Levites were ringing the fame hymn in both deftruftions, re- peating from Pfal. xciv. 23. thefe words : f( He fhall bring upon them their own iniquity, and he fhall cut them off in their own wkkednefs, yea, the Lord our God fhall cut them off." Vid. Antitj. Lib. X. c. xi. OF [ 192 ] OF THE FIRST BOOK of CHRONICLES. rPMIE Jews formerly reckoned the tAvo Books ■"- of Chronicles but as one [a]; which was en- titled the Book of Diaries [b], or Journals, in al- lufion to thole ancient journals which appear to have been kept among the Jews. The Books of Chro- nicles, indeed, as well as thofe of Kings, were in all probability copied, as to many of their hiftorical re- lations, from thefe ancient chronicles of the Kings of Ifrael and Judah. Such chronicles muft unqueftion- ably have exifted, iince in the books of Kings there are frequent references to books of Chronicles, as containing circumftances which are not found in thofe fo entitled in our canon, not to mention that [a] They now adopt our divifion, as well as in the pre- ceding books, in conformity to our mode of citation in con- cordances, of which they borrowed the ufe from the Latin church. [b] D'D'n n^i, dibre hajjamim, Verba dierum, that is, The words of days ; extracts from diaries. They are called Chro- nicles from the Greek word ^o»««, thefe THE FIRST BOOK OF CHRONICLES. 193 thefe were written after the books of Kings. The books of Chronicles which we now poifeis, were fo named by St. Jerom: they are diftinguifhed in the Septuagint as the books of " things omitted [c];" and they are fuppofed to have beendefigned as a kind of i'upplement to the preceding books of fcripture ; to fupply i'uch important particulars as had been omitted, becauie inconfiltent with the plan of former books. They are generally, and with much proba- bility, attributed to Ezra [d] ; who has ufed a fimi- lar ltile of expreffion, and Avhofe book appears to be a continuation of them [e]. Ezra, if he were the author, might have digeiled them by the affilt- ance of Haggai and Nehemiah ; as well from hifto- rical records, as from the accounts of contemporary prophets. These books were certainly compiled after the f_c] Tl the connection of the two accounts is evident, fmce the book of Ezra begins with a repetition of the two verfcs which terminate the books of Chronicles. The facred writers pals over the time of the captivity as a fad period of affliction and punishment: during which, it' the people were indulged in the exerciie of their religion, they had few historical events to re- cord ; and therefore we have no general hiStory of their circumitances ; and muft have recourfe to the books of thole illuitrious prophets who flourished among them in Afiyria, for the only particulars that can be obtained concerning their condition. The preient book begins with an account of God's having difpofed Cyrus, either by positive injunction, or by discovering to him his long-predicted defigns, to promote the rebuilding of the city and temple of Jerufalem. It relates the accomplishment of fome illuftrious prophecies in the releafe [f] which that monarch granted in the firft year of his reign over Babylon ; and in the return of the Jews [g] to their own country after a captivity of Seventy years [h], A. M. [f] Ifaiah xliv. 26 — 28. A prophecy uttered concerning Cyrus, defcribed by name near 200 years before he appeared : juftly noticed with admiration by heathen writers. [g] Scaliger Ifag. Lib. III. p. 260. & de Emend. Temp. Lib. VI. p. 576. [h] The name of Jews feems firft to haye been applied to this people after the return from the captivity. Jofeph. Antiq. XI. c. v. The Jews returned from Babylon fifty years after the taking of Jerufalem ; but the feventy years which Jere- miah predicted as the period_ for the duration of the captivity, are 206 OF THE BOOK OF EZRA. A. M. 3468. We then are prefented with a lift of the leaders and numbers of the captives who returned under Zerubbabel, and perceive how fatally the na- tion had been diminimed and brought low by fuc- cefiive defeats and difperfions [i]. "We contemplate the picture of an haraffed people reftored from cap- tivity, and returning to their country, which had long lain defolate [k]. We behold them erecting a tem- porary altar and fervice, and laying the foundation of their temple. Afterwards are defcribed the lamen- tations of thofe who remembered the magnificence of Solomon's building ; the oppoiition excited by the Samaritans and others, whole alnftance had been rejected ; the interruption occafioned by their in- are reckoned from the third or fourth year of Jehoiakim's reign, A.M. 3398. Vid. Jer. xxv. 1, 11. xxix. 10. when Nebuchadnezzar firft invaded Judaea, and carried off captives. Dan. i. 1, 3. 2 Kings xxiv. 1. Patrick in Jerem. xxv. 11. xxix. 10. Dan. i. 1. Zech. i. 12. viik 1 — 5. and Prid. Ant. A. C. 518. [1] Many of the Jews remained in the countries into which they had been carried. The Jewifh writers fay, that only the dregs of the people returned. It mould be remarked, that' Ezra fays, that '* the whole congregation together was 42,360;" though if we calculate the feparate numbers, they amount but to 29,818. Ezra, perhaps, omits the detail of fome individuals, collectively reckoned : as thofe of the ten tribes, or thofe who could not find their regifter ; or poflibly the numbers are in fome inftances corrupted. [k] As the land had lain defolate only fifty-two years from the death of Gedaliah, Prideaux fuppofes that the Jews had negle&ed the law concerning the fabbatical year, only from the beginning of the reign of Afa ; that is, 364 years. Vid. Preface to Leviticus, p. 109, note c. trigues ; OF THE BOOK OF EZRA. 207 trigues ; and at laft, the finifhing and dedication of the temple, about A. M. 3489 [l], and the celebra- tion of the Paffover [m]. Ezra then relates his re- turn with his companions to Jerufalcm; confeffes the difobedience of the people to God's laws, in inter- marrying with the Gentile nations of the land ; de- fcribes his own pious and conciliatory prayer ; the repentance of the people, and their ieparation from the wives and children, who not being of the holy feed, might, if fuffered to intermingle with the Jews, have rendered uncertain the accomplifhmcnt of the promifes ; and he concludes with an enumeration of thofe who had tranfgreifed : ftigmatizing, with im- partial indignation, the names of even the priefts and [l] The Jews tell our Saviour, that their temple had been forty-fix years in building ; which muft mean the temple as re- paired and enlarged by Herod. This work was begun in the eighteenth year of his reign ; from whence to the thirtieth year of Chrift was a period of forty-fix years ; and the temple was not even then entirely finifhed ; nor according to the account of Jofephus till the time of Agrippa, near fixty years after the death of Chrift. Vid. John ii. 20. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XV. c. xiv« Lib. XX. c. A'iii. [m] It is neceflary here to mention, that Juftin Martyr in his dialogue with Trypho, aflerts that the following fpeech of Ezra was in the ancient Hebrew copies of the Bible, but expunoed by the Jews, viz. " Ezra faid to the people, this paffover is our Saviour, and our refuge ; and if you will be perfuaded of it, and let it into your hearts, that we are to humble him in a fign, and afterwards fhall believe in him, this place fhall not be de- ftroyed for ever, faith the God of hofts ; but if you will not believe in him, neither hearken to his preaching, ye fhall be a laughing-ftoek to the Gentiles. 208 OF THE BOOK OF EZRA. rulers who had offended in this important violation of the law. The hiftory contains a period of about feventy- nine years : from A. M. 3468, when Cyrus became matter of Perfia, to A. M. 35-^7, when Ezra effected the reform defcribed in the laft chapter of his book ; for between the dedication of the temple, and the departure of Ezra from Babylon in the feventh year of the reign of Artaxerxes Longimanus, is a period of fifty-ieven or fifty-eight years ; which this book pafles over in filence, only mentioning that the Jews had during that time intermixed with the Gen- tiles. This book is written in Chaldee [n] from the eighth verfe of the fourth chapter to the nineteenth verfe of the fixth chapter, and from the beginning of the feventh chapter to the twenty-feventh verfe ; for as this part of the work contains chiefly letters, con- verfation, and decrees uttered in that language; itwas confiftent with the fidelity of the facred hiftorian, to defcribe the very words which were ufed; efpecially, as the people recently returned from the captivity were familiar, and perhaps more converfant with the Chaldee, than even with the Hebrew tongue ; and it was probably about this time that the Chaldee para- phrafes began to be ufed ; for it appears by Nehe- miah"s account [o], that all could not uriderftand the law. which may mean that fome of them had forgot- ten the Hebrew during their difpcriion in the cap- [n] The Chaldee or Syriac, was the language then ufed over all Aflyria, Babylonia, Perfia, &c. [o] Neh. viii. 2, 8. Cafaubon Fpift. 590. tivity. OF THE BOOK OF EZRA. £09 tivity [p]. Some affign, likewife, to this time, the origin of the Jewiih lynagogues, though it is pofiible that they exiitcd before tiie captivity [q]. Eera was of the facerdotal family, a deicendant &i Seraiah [uj, in a right line from Aaron. He fucceeded Zerubbabel in the government of Judaea, by a commiffion which laited twelve years, to A. M. 3558.; at the expiration of which term, he either returned to Babylon to give an account of the itate of the province of Judaea ; or elie retired into a pri- vate ltation in his own country; co-operating, doubt- lels, in the pious deligns of Nehemiah his fucceffor, by whom he is related foon after to have produced and read the law of Moles to the people. Ezra, indeed, appears to have been particularly well (killed in the law, to have given much attention to the itudy of the fcriptures, and to have been well veried in the interpretation of them, lie itiles himfelf a ready fcribe [s], and profeffes to have prepared himfelf to inltruet [p] Univ. Hift. vol. x. Eook II. p. 220. [q] Pfalm lxxiv. 7, 8. [rj Chap. vii. 1—5. He calls himfelf the fon of Seraiah, which only implies his deicendant ; or at leaft, it is not probable that he was the immediate fon of the high-prielt Seraiah, who was Piain at the taking of jerufalem. 2 Kings x>:v. iS. Prid. Con. Part I. B. V. [s] Ezra vii. 6. The word, *ied, fopher, implies one fkilful in the interpretation of fcripture. The origin of the fcribes is uncertain ; they were probably fir ft employed in fubferviencv to the prophets, and, perhaps, educated in their fchools. fudges v. 14. 1 Chron. xxvii. 32. Jerem. xxxvi. 26. They feem to have been eftab'ifhed as an order of men after the P captivity, £10 OF THE BOOK OF EZRA. inftruct the people in the ftatutes of God : the tra- dition, therefore, of his having made a collection of the facred writings is extremely probable. We know, indeed, from Jofephus, that the Jewifli prieits after every important war, were aceuftomed on the eitablilhment of peace, both at home and abroad, publicly to ai'certain, recognize, and copy out the regifters of the prieithood [t] ; by which we mult either understand the fcriptures, or believe that the fame practice prevailed as to them. Ezra, therefore, may well be fuppofed to have publimed a correct edition, after the re-eirablilhmenfc of the Jews; and probably with the affiitance of the great fynagogue [u], which particularly flourifhed in the time of Artaxerxes Longimanus ; not that there is any reafon to imagine that the facred books were loft during the captivity; as fome have abfurdlv conceived, from the fabulous relation of a pretended captivity, and to have rifen into repute after the cefTation of prophecy. They are mentioned in the New Teftament as doctors of the law, and teachers of the people. Matt. xxii. 35. and Mark xii. 28, Sec. They appear in later times to have cor- rupted the law by their traditions, and to have become deficient in purity of manners. Matt. xv. 3. v. 20. Luke xx. 46. Of the infpired feribes, of whom Simon fpeaks, there is. no account in fcripture. TtJ Ot 'SJafsc^iiTrcj.ciroi tuv iicui) y.ocnx ttctXiv ex. rut ac^xmv y:xa.~ fxccimv (^wira-ilx-iy are the words of Jofephus, Lib. I. cont. Apion. [u] Irena:us. adv. Ha?res, Lib. III. c. xxv. Tertul. do Habit. Mulier. c. iii. Clem. Alex. Strom. I. Bafil. Epift. ad Chilon, Sec. Chryfoft. Homil. in Epift. ad Heftrae. Herbelot Biblioth. Orient, fub Voce Ozair. Ben. Seraiah 6c Koran, cap. Basra. Introd. p. 6, burning OF THE EOOK OF EZRA. £11 burning of the law, and of the restoration of the Scriptures by divine revelation, which account is given only in the apocryphal book of Efdras [x] : a work of iittle or no authority. The copies of the law were too much reverenced to be loft ; and Da- niel [y] we know was in pofleffion of one during the captivity. He likewife quotes the prophecies of Jeremiah [z] ; and probably other perfons had copies of the fcriptures, many of them being favoured by the conquerors ; and if the facred veflels of the temple were fo carefully preferved, we may well conceive that the authentic manufcripts of the He- brew fcriptures were fafely depofited at Babylon ; and perhaps reftored to Zerubbabel, or Ezra, on ■their return to Jerufalem. But wherever prelerved, F.zra certainly produced the Law, and read it to the people [a] ; and the other books of fcripture were collected by him and Nehemiah [b], or by the great fynagogue. Ezra was a moft ufeful perfon to the Jews, who reverence his memory with a regard almoft equal to that which they entertain for Mofes. He is not parti- cularly ftiled a prophet in fcripture ; but our Saviour makes no distinction between the authors of the facred books, except that of " Mofes and the Prophets." Ezra was undoubtedly an appointed minifter of God; •and he wrote under the influence of the Holy Spirit, Jx] 2 Efdras xiv. 21. [y] Chap. ix. 11, 13. [zj Dan. ix. 2. [a] Neherru viii. 2. and ancient Univ. Hift, %*oi. iii. p. 41?. [b] 2 Mace. ii. 13. P? or 'J 12 OT THE BOOK OE EZRA. or his book would not have been admitted into the Hebrew canon ; or received as iacred from the earlieft ages of the chriitian church. Ezra is reported by ibme traditionary accounts to have died in the hundred and twentieth year of his age, and to have been buried at Jeruialem [-c] ; though others fay that he died in Perfia, and was buried on the banks of the river Samura ; where his tomb is ihewn [d]. Beiides the books which are afcribed to Ezra in the apocryphal part of our Bible, there have been fpurious conftitutions ; bene- dictions; and prayers attributed to him; as likewife a revelation; a dream; and a prophecy relative to the Roman empire ; together with a calendar of pretended aufpicious and unlucky days, none of which require attention. [c] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XI. c. v, [d] Benjamin Tudela, OF L 215 ] OF THE BOOK of NEHEMIAH. THE Book of Nehemiah being fubjoined in the Hebrew canon to that of Ezra as a continua- tion of his hiftory, was often considered as his work [a] : and in the Latin and Greek Bibles it is called the Second Book of Ezra; but it undoubtedly was written by Nehemiah, for he profefTes himielf the author of it in the beginning, and uniformly fpeaks in the firft perfon. It was probably admitted into the catalogue of the facred writings by fomeof the great fynagogue [j;J. Ezra appears to have continued near ten years in the government of Juda?a, after the reform which he mentions in the laft chapter of his Book : periifting probably in his endeavours to reitore religion, and to [a] Hieron. Praef. in Reg. Eufeb. Chron. ad An. 1584. [b] When Ifidore aliened, that the fecond book of Ezra was not in the Hebrew canon, he meant the apocryphal book attri- buted to him ; for he fays, that Ezra's firft book contained the words of Ezra and Nehemiah, Ifidor. Orig. Lib, VI. c. ii. P 3 promote 214" OF THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH. promote the profperity of his country. Circum-. ftances were, however, ib unfavourable and adverfe to his defigns, that in the twentieth year of Arta- xerxes Longimanus [c], A. M. 3559, we find, from Nehemiah, that representations were made to him at Babylon of the airlifted ftate of the Jews ; and of the ruinous condition of their city, of which the-, walls were yet unrepaired. This hook begins with an account of NehemiafTs grief at this report; of his application to Artaxerxes. for permiffion to vifit and rebuild Jerulalem, " the place of his fathers fepulchres/' This he obtained, probably by the entreaty of Efther, the Queen [p], who favoured the Jews. Nehemiah then relates his departure and arrival at Jerulalem with authority ; feelingly defcribes the defolate ftate of Jerulalem, and his exertions to repair its difmantled walls. He records the names of thofe patriotic, men who afiilted him on this occation ; the confpiracy af the Ammo- nites, and other enemies, againft the work, and the defeat of their defigns. After the finilhing of the- walls and fortifications, Nehemiah applied hiinfelf to other public objeCts. The fcarcity of the inhabitants, in the large city of Jerulalem firft excited his at- tention. He fortunately at this time found a regiftcr [c] Not Artaxerxes Mnemon, as fome have imagined. Vid. Scalig. Proleg. Oper. de Emend. Temp. Lib. VI. & Patrick,. The month Chifleu, mentioned in the rirft verfe of Nehemiah, anfwers to a part of our November and December. [dJ Chap. ii. 6. Of OF THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH. 215 of thofe perfons who returned from the captivity under Zeiubbabel : which he repeats in the feventh chapter [i.J : in order to complete the reitoration of their poffeffions to the refpectivc tribes ; and that none but the Levites and defcendants of Aaron might officiate in the fervice of the temple and of the prieithood. Nehemiah then defcribes the public reading of the Law to the people ; the celebration of the Feaft of the Tabernacles [f] ; and other religious appoint- ments, [e] Chap, vii. This genealogy differs from that given by Ezra in the fecond chapter of his book, with refpeft to names and numbers ; which difference Prideaux attributes to altera- tions made by Nehemiah, in compliance with changes that had happened fince the departure from Babylon. It is remark- able that the two accounts agree in the total amount j and the fum of the numbers which are feparately detailed, will cor- respond, if to the 29,818 fpecified by Ezra, we add the 176^ perfons reckoned by Nehemiah, which Ezra has omitted ; and, on the other hand, to the 31,089 enumerated by Nehemiah, add the 494 whieh is an overplus in Ezra's book, not noticed by Nehemiah: both writers including in the fum total 10,777 of the mixed multitude, which is not particularized in the in- dividual detail. The accounts unqueftionably agreed when they were received into the canon, unlefs where there might be fome caufe for a variation ; and probably the differences that now exift, have originated in the carelefTnefs of the copyifts. Vid. Commentators. [f] The Scenopegia, or feaft of Tabernacles, was a grand feftival in memory of the Ifraelites having dwelt in tents in the wildernefs. It began the 15th of September, and was cele- brated for eight days with great joy. The obfervancc of it P 4 feems £1(5 OF THE BOOK OF N F.HEMI AH. ments, obferved with a pathetic commemoration and thankfgiving for God's former mercies, as defcribed in preceding books of fcripture. Then follows an account of the renewal of the covenant of obedience and refpect to God's law, recorded as a memorial, with the names of thofe who iigned it; a catalogue of thole who were appointed by lot, or confented to live at Jerufalem, which was furrotmded by holtile neighbours ; and the book concludes with a defcrip- tion of the reformation, both civil and religious, which Nehemiah effected ; the laft act of which, the removal of the ftrange wives, was, according to the general computation, accomplifhed about A. M. 3574- [g]; but which could not have happened, as Prideaux has on very fufficient grounds determined, till A. M. 3595 [11] ; at which time he fuppofes the fir ft period of Daniel's prophecy to conclude [i"]; and the fcripture hiftory to clofe, Neiifmtah feems to have been much Infilled on by the prophets ; and as it argued a fenfe of God's former mercies, it feems to have been attended with a bleffing. Vid. Zech. xiv. 16, 17. [oj Blair's Chronol. [h] The laft aft of Nehemiah's reformation took place under the pontificate of Joiada ; (for the original of chap. xiii. 28. will not admit a conftruclion which (hould reprefent Eliafhib as the high-piieft), and Joiada fucceeded to the priefthood, A. M. 3S91- [1] Prideaux dates the period of the feven weeks from the feventh year of Artaxerxes, An. A. C. 458 ; when Ezra was commiflioned by a decree to rebuild the temple, and to rcftore jerufalem ; from that time, to the reformation effeded by Ne- hemiahj OF THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH. £]J NehemIjAH was the ion of Hachaliah; and ac- cording to tradition, of the tribe of Judah [k], though it had been fanned, from an apocryphal ac- count of his offering facrifices at the head of the priefts, that he was of the tribe of Levi [l]. He appears to have been a different perion from the Nehemiah mentioned by Ezra [m], and in this book, as one who returned from the captivity with Zerub- babel ; iincc from the fhft year of Cyrus to the twentieth of Artaxerxcs Longimanus, no fewer than ninetv-one years intervene : lb that Nehemiah mult, on the fuppoiition that they were the fame pcrfons, have been at this time much above an hundred years old; at which age it can hardly be thought [x] pro- bable, that he fliould have taken a journey from Shu- man to Jerui'alem ; and have been capable during a government of twelve years, and afterwards, of all thofe active exertions, which in this book he is de- fcribed to have made. Nehemiah, however, the au- thor of this book, appears to have been born at Ba- bylon ; and was fo dUtinguifhed for his family and hcrniali, were forty, nine years, when the Church and State were re-eftablifhed ; or, according to the figurative description of Daniel, when " the ftreet and the walls were rebuilt in troublous times."' Yid. Dan. ix. 25. Prid, Con. An. Ant. C 409. [k] R. Abarb. in Cabal. Eufeb. Chron. Can. A. 1584. J fi do re, Geneb, &c. [jl] 2 Mace. i. 18. and following verfes. [m] Ezra ii. 1. Nehem. vii. 7. [>] Michael, Pra-f. in Nehem. qualities, 218 OF THE BOOK OF XEIIEMIAII. qualities, as to be felected for the office of cup- bearer to the King : a iituation of great honour and emolument in the Perfian court. He was likewife cliftinguillied by the title of Termata, which was in general appropriated to the King's deputies and go- vernors [o]. By his privilege of daily attendance on the King, he had conftant opportunities of concili- ating his favour ; and was enabled by the roval bounty to fupport his government with great mag- nificence at his own private charge, and generoufly to relieve his people from the burden of that expence which they had neceilarily fuftained under preceding governors [p]. In every other refpect, likewife, he difplayed the mcft exemplary and difinterefted zeal for the prolperity of his country [q]. If Nehemiah were not absolutely a prophet,, he profeffes himfelf to have acted under the authority and guidance of God f it]. He feems to have confpired with Ezra in all his pious defigns ; and probably affifted him in the revifal of the canon [s], The Jews report him to have been one of the great fynagogue. The author of the fecond Book of Maccabees attributes to him writings which are now no longer extant [t], if they ever exifted. ' [o] Neh. ii. 6$. x. i. and Michael, in Loc. [>•] Neb. v. 14, 18. His name fignitied confolation, [q] Ecclus. xlix. 1 3. [r] Neb. ii. 8, 18. [s] 2 Mace. ii. 13. [t] 2 Mace. ii. 13. Vid. Carpz. Introd. ad Lib. Hift. Vet, Teft. p. 343. Frifchrauth's Dili, de non Sperand. Reftitut. Arc«e, Fxdor. JII, cap. x. Aftei; OF THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH. 219 After a continuance of twelve years [u] in the government of Judaea, Nehemiah appears to have returned to Shufhan, agreeably to his promife [x]. What length of time he continued in Perfia cannot be ascertained. Pridcaux, to allow a fufricient in- terval for the corruptions that took place during his ublence, fuppofes at lea ft rive years ; the text only fays, " certain days [y]," which is an ambiguous exprefiion. It is probable that he foon obtained permiiiion to return to his country, where he appears to have ended his days. It is not pofiible to deter- mine how long he furvived his return. Many learned writers conceiving that Jaddua and Darius, men- tioned in the twenty-lecond verie of the twelfth chapter of this book, mult have been the high-prieit Jaddua, and Darius Codomannus, who was contem- porary with the former during his prieithood [z], and [u] Chap. xiii. 6, [x] Nehem. ii. 6. [y] Nchcm. xiii. 6. In the Hebrew it is, " at the end of Jays," which means, perhaps, at the end of the year. [z] Some have imagined that Darius, the Perfian, might have been Darius Nothus ; but the only Darius who was con-, temporary with the prieilhood of Jaddua was Darius Codo- mannus. Beiides, the text enumerating the fucceflion of the high-priefts, evidently fpeaks of Jaddua as high-prieit, who did not enter on his office till A. M. 3663 ; and therefore the verfe muft have been written above 100 years after Nehemiah went up from Babylon, when we cannot fuppofe him to have been lefs than 120 or 130 years of age. The text would even lead us to fuppofe that it was written after the death of Jofhua ; V/hich would tend ftill farther to convince us that the paffage £20 OF THE BOOK OF NEH F.M IAII. and who did not begin to reign till 110 years after the date of Nehemiah's commiffion : have remarked, that he muft have lived an extraordinary length of time to have inferted this account; and, indeed, though it is by no means incredible that Nehemiah might have been permitted by God to live 1 30 or 140 years, becauie his eminent virtues were highly conducive to the reftoration of his country ; yet it is, perhaps, more probable to believe, that the whole, or at leaft the latter part of the regilter contained in the twenty-fix firft verfes of the twelfth chapter was a fubfequent addition [a], made by thole who received the book into the canon ; that is, by fome members of the great fynagogue ; and, indeed, the whole de- tail appears to be an unconnected and foreign inter- polation. Neiiemt ah frequently in this book calls upon God not to wipe out the good deeds that he had done : rather in pious fupplication to be remembered on their account [b], than in any arrogance of heart. To have concealed the actions of his government, would have been inconfiftentwith the office of a faith- ful hiftorian ; and have deprived pofterity of an ex- is a fubfequent interpolation. Jofephus fuppofes Sanballat to have lived to the time of Alexander the Great ; but the hif- torian muft have meant a different perfon from Sanballat the Horonite, who oppofed Nehemiah ; or he muft have been mif- taken. Vid. jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XL c. viii. Prid. An. Ant. Chrift. 45-9. [a] Voffi Chron. Sac. c. x. p. 149. Prid, Con. An. Ant. Chrift. 43-8. [b] Chap. v. 19. xiii. 14, 12, 31. cellent OF THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH. 221 cellent example. The facred writers, confcious of their own dignity, are equally fuperior to difguife or vanity. They record their own virtues and their own failings with equal fmcerity. Neiiemiah was probably the laft governor dele- gated by the Periian Kings; who, poffibly, after his death, left the government of Judaea to the high- prieft of the Jews, till the Periian empire was de- itroyed by Alexander the Great [c]. [cj Cornel, Bertram, de Rep. Jud. p, 168, 173, 175. OF f 2£2 ] OF THE BOOK of ESTHER, THIS Book is in the Hebrew ftiled " the vo- lume of Either:" it was received into the Jewifh canon with peculiar veneration ; and eiteemed above many of the prophetic Books, probably be- cause therein are defcribed the origin and ceremonies of the feaft of Purim. It is called the Book of Efther [a], becaufe it contains the hiftory of this Jewifh captive, who, by her remarkable accompliihmenfs, gained the affections of Ahaiuerus ; and by a marriage with him, was railed to the throne of Perfia. The author of the Book is not certainly known. Some [a] The word Efther is of Perfian derivation, Starith, Aftram, Er*p ; its fignifkation is uncertain, The vowel is prefixed for foftuefs, according to the Hebrew idiom. Vid. Caftel. in Lexico Perfico, col. 329, 8c Pfeifier in Dub. Vex. p. 458. The original word was defcriptive, and fignified Dark, which was deemed beautiful by the Jews. Hilar. CEcon. p. 621. Thcocrit. Idyl. x. 26 — 29. Efther v/as called by her own family HadalTah, which implies a myrtle. Vid. Targum, ad chap. ii. 7. Of OF THE BOOK OF ESTHER. 223 vf the fathers [n] fuppoie it to have been written by Ezra; others contend that it was competed by Joa- chim high-prieft of the Jews, and grandibn of Jofe- tlech. The Talmudiits attribute, it to the joint la- bours of the great fynagogue [c], which fucceeded Ezra in the fuperintendance of the canon of fcripture. The twentieth verfe of the ninth chapter of the book has led others to believe that Mordecai was the au- thor [o] ; but what is there related to have been written by him, feems to refer only to the circular letter which he diitributed [e]. There are, lafriy, other writers, who maintain, that the book was the production of Efther's and Mordecai's united induftry [f] ; and probably they might have communicated an account of events fo interefting to the whole na- tion, to the great fynagogue at Jerulalem; fome of the members of which may with great reafon be fup- poied to have digeited the information thus received into its prefent form [c,]. We have, however, no fufficient evidence to determine, nor is it, perhaps, of much importance to alcertain preciiely who was the author; but that it was a genuine and faithful [b] Epiphan. de Ponder, & Menf. cap. iv. Auguft. de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVIII. c. xxxvi. Ifidor. Orig. Lib. VI. cap. ii. [c] Bava Bathra, cap. i. f. 15. [dJ As mod of the Latin fathers, and Clemens Alexandrinus among the Greeks, Strom. Lib. I. Vid. alio, Elias in MaiT. Aben-Ezra, Abrah. Hifpan. Sec. [e] Chap. ix. 20, 23, 26. [f] Chap. ix. 29. [g] Heut. Dcmonftrat. Evang. Prop. IV. description 224 OF THE BOOK OF ESTHER. defcription of what did actually happen, is certain ; not only from its admifiion into the canon, but alio from the inftitution of the feaft of Purim, which from its firft eftablimment has been regularly obferved as an annual iblemnity [h] ; on the fourteenth and fif- teenth of the month Adar, in commemoration of the great deliverance which Efther, by her intereft, had procured ; and which is even now celebrated among the Jews with many peculiar ceremonies, and with rejoicings even to intoxication. This feftival was called Purim, or the feaft of lots (Pur in the Perfian language Signifying a lot) from the events men- tioned in chap. iii. 7. ix. CJ4. The Jews [i] maintain that this book was urn- queftionably infpired by the Holy Ghoft; and that though all the books of the Prophets, and of the Ha- giographi fhall be deftroyed at the coming of the Meffiah, that of Efther fhall continue with thofe of Moles, for Either had laid, that " the days of Pu- rim fhould not fail from among the Jews [k]." This is meant, however, only of that part of the book [h] 2 Mace. xv. 36, 37. Cedex. Theod. Tit. de Judccis. The feaft is called alfo the feaft of Hainan and Mordecai. .The month Adar correfponds with our February and March. Efther and Mordecai appear to have ordained only a feaft ; but the Jews » 1 Atyo, as they profefs long to have done, a faft on the 13th, which was the day deftined for their extirpation. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XL c. vi. Heut. Prop. IV. ChriftiaR Magaz. vol. iy. p. 260. Prid. Con. Ann. 452. Buxtorf. Synag. Jud. c. xxiv. Calrnet. DicL word Purim. [1] Maimon. More Nevoch, Par. II. c. xlv. [x] Chnp. ix. 28. Pfeiffer. Thefaur. Hermeneut. p. 599. which OF THE BOOK OF ESTHER- 2251 which our church conliders as canonical; for the fix chapters which are only in the Greek and Latin copies, were never received by the Jews; and they arc rejected as apocryphal by us, in conformity to the fentinients of the ancient church, for this and other reafons which will be hereafter affigned [l]. It is to be lamented, indeed, that the fpurioqs chap- ters mould ever have been annexed to the authentic part, fince they tended to discredit the facred book; and it has been fuppoled that a difrefpect for the apocryphal additions induced fome ancient writers to leave it out of the catalogue of the canonical books [m] ; and occalioned Luther to exprefs a wiih that it might be expunged from the lift [x]. Thefe, however, being refcinded, the remainder is entitled to our reverence as canonical It is eftablifhed by the (iiffrage of antiquity, and be^rs every mark of authenticity and truth [o]. There has been much difference of opinion con- cerning the period which we mould afiign to the events recorded in this book. It is certain, from [l] Preface to the apocryphal chapters of Either. [m] Eufeb. Hift. Ecclef. Lib. IV. c. xxvi. Athan. Epift. 39. Gregor. Nazianz. de Ver. Sc Gen. Lib. S. Script. Some 1 that Efther was included in thefe catalogues, under the book of Ezra, as it was fuppofed to have been written by Ezra. It was in the catalogues of Origen, Cyril, Hilary, Epiphanius, and Jerom, and in that of the Council of Laodicea. Vid. Infra, Preface to Apocryph. chapters oif Either. Xo:e 2. [n] Conviv. Serm. f. 494. and Lib. de Serv. Arbit. tom. Hi. f. 82. * [oj Eufeb. Hift. Ecclef. L. VI. c. zxr. Hilar, in Pfclm i. Q many 226 OF THE BOOK OF ESTHER. many inftances, that the Jews diftinguifhed foreign perfons by names different from thole which they bear in prophane hiftory [p] ; as, indeed, all nations are accuftomed to corrupt proper names in confor- mity to the genius and pronunciation of their own language. Scaliger contends, from a fanciful re- femniance of names, that Ahafuerus was the fame with Xerxes [q] ; whole Queen, Ameftris, he con* ceives, might have been Lfther. Others, upon grounds nearly as conjectural and fallacious, have imagined, that Ahafuerus was Cyaxares; and others contend that he was Cambyfes [r]. Ulher fuppofes, that by Ahafuerus we are to underftand Darius Hy- ftafpes [s] ; who refided at Sufa, and v. hole extent of dominion and actions correfpond with the accounts of this book. But to each of thefe opinions conii- derable objections may be drawn from the accounts of prophane hiitorians [t] ; and probably the opinion of Prideaux is beft fupported, who maintains, agree- [pj Vitringa in Hypot. Sac. p. roo. § 49. [q] Scaliger de Eincndat. Temp. Lib. VI. p. 284. Grotius, Miehaelis, &c. Capellus places the hiftory £o late as the time of Ochus, who was the fucceiTor of Artaxerxes Mncmon. [rJ Targ. R. Salomon, Seder Olam Rabba, p. 86. [s] UiTeri Annal. Vet. Tcft. Period. Jul. An. 4193. Du Pin, Maius (Econ. V. T. p. 1073. The advocates for this opinion maintain with the Rabbinical writers, that Efther was the Arty- ftona of Darius ; bat Artyftona was the daughter of Cyrus ; and the hiftory of AtofTa by no means accords, any more than does that of Parmis, with the account here given of Valhti. Vid» Herod. Lib. III. & Lib. VIL [t] Vitringa, Lib. VI. p. no. ably OF THE BOOK OF ESTHER. 9SLJ ably to the account of Jofephus [u]; of the feptua- gint ; and of the apocryphal additions to the book of Either, that Ahafuerus was Artaxerxes Longimanus [xj ; whole extraordinary favour to the Jews might in fome meafure ariie from the iuggeftions of Either ; the hiitory, therefore, may be iuppoied to have com- menced about A. M. 3544 [y], and it contains an account of a period which extends from about ten to twenty years. The book defcribes the advancement of Efther; who, by the inter eft which me conciliated with Aha- fuerus, delivered the Jews from a great deftruction which had been contrived for them by Haman, an infolent favourite of the King. It prefents an in- tercfting defcription of mortified pride, and of malice baffled to the deftruction of its contrivers. It like- wife exhibits a very lively representation of the vex- ations and troubles, of the anxieties, treachery, and diffimulation of a corrupt court. The manners are painted with great force and fidelity ; and the vicif- iitudes and characters are difplayed with dramatic eft'ecr. The author feems to have been fo intimately acquainted with the Perfian cuftoms, that fome have [u] Jofeph. Ant. Lib. XI. c. vi. [x] Prid. Ccn. An. 470. Sulpit. Sever. Hift. Sac. Lib. II. p. 307. Calmet. Did. word Vaflui. Lightfoot, vol. i. p. 137. The chief objection to the period of Artaxerxes Longimanus is drawn from Efther ii. 5, 6. but that pafiage may imply, that Kiib. was carried away captive with Jeconiah ; or that Mordecai was a defcendant of fome one of Nebuchadnezzar's captives. [y] Petav. Induct. Templi XII. c. xxvii. Auctor Ecclef, Goth. p. 319, Q 2 conceived 228 OF THE BOOK OF ESTHEK. conceived a notion that he tranfcribed his work from the Perfian chronicles [zj. It has been remarked, that the name of God is not mentioned throughout the book ; his fuperintendent providence is, how- ever, frequently illuftrated : it is fhewn, indeed, in every part of the work ; difconcerting evil deiigns, and producing great events by means leemingly in- adequate. Calmet aflerts, on the authority of Paul Lucas, that the tombs of Mordecai and Either are ftili fhewn at Hamaden or Ecbatana in Periia, in the iynagogue of the Jews, who are very numerous there. [z] Hottinger Thefaur. Philolog. Lib. IT. ch. i. p. 488. Aben-Ezra, Com. in Procem. SeMcn in Theolog. Lib, III, Excfcit, V. p. 4S6, 4X' [ £29 ] OF THE BOOK of JOB. CONCERNING the nature, and author of this Book, various opinions have been enter- tained. Some, as well Chriftian as Rabbinical writers, have ventured to confider it as a fictitious relation of the parabolical kind, without any hiftorical foundation [a] ; and others as a dramatic work, grounded on fome traditional accounts of a real perlbnage ; or as an allegory, in which, under real characters and circumftances, are lhadowed out the Jewifh nation, and fome particulars of the Jewiili hiftory during [b]> or after the Babylonifh cap- tivity. [a] Bava Bathra, Anabaptifts, &c. [b] Garnett taking up fome ideas of Bifliop Warburton, has etched out an ingenious allegory, in which the condition of Job is confidered as defcriptive of the Jewifh fufFerings during the captivity. But though he has ftrained every cir- cumftance in the hiiiory in order to accommodate it to this re- prefentation, he has produced no conviction. A lively fancy may readily difcover fuch refemblances as he has pointed out ; but if the judgment be allowed to reflect, it will fuggeft un- answerable objections to the theorv, however fpecious it may be. Q 3 Vid. 230 OF THE BOOK OF JOB. tivity [c]. But to indulge in fuch un author! fed fancies is very dangerous, and inconfiftent with the refpecl due to iacred writ; and in the prefent inftance there is no Sufficient foundation for fuppofing that the book is any other than a literal hiitory of the temptation and fuffe rings of a real character [d] ; fince it has every external fan&ion of authority, and is ftamped with every intrinfic mark that can cha- racterize a genuine relation. Of the real exiftence of Job no reafonable doubt can be entertained, if we confider, that it is proved by the concurrent teftimony of all eaitern tradition ; that the whole hiftory of this illuftrious character, with many fabulous additions, was known among the Syrians and Chaldaeans; that many of the noblelt families among the Arabians, are diftinguifhed by Vid. Garnett's Differt. on Job. The Ufe and Intent of Pro- phecy, Diff. II. Maimon. More Nevoch, p. 3. c. xxii. Bava Bathra, c. i. fol. 15. Sentimens de quelq. Theolog. Holland. p. 1S4. Grot. Com. in Job, Lib. I. Le Clerc, &c. [c] Bifhop Warburton imagined, that Job was intended to perfoliate the Jewifh people on their return from the captivity ; that by his three friends were meant the three great enemies of the Jews : Sanballat, Tobiah, and Gefhem ; and by Job's wife, the idolatrous wives which fome of the Jews had married, as we learn from Nehemiah. A ft range conceit, of which the im- probabilities are by no means glofled over by the elaborate rcafoning, and extravagant afiemons of the learned writer, Vi .1. Pt icr';-. DiiTert. on Job. [d] Spanhcim Hift. Job. Sehultcns Com. in Job, and Com- mentators in general. OF THE BOOK OF JOB. 231 Lis name [e], and boaft of being defcended from him; and laitly, that Job is mentioned as a real character by Ezekiel [f] and St. James [g]. Th e book of Job wa.-) likewife certainly written as a literal relation of actual events: for this is evident from the ftile of the author; from his mode of in- troducing the fubject ; and alio from the circum- itantial detail of habitation, kindred, and condition, as well as from the names of the perfons therein mentioned : which correfpond with other accounts of that age and country, in which Job is generally i'up- pofed to have exiited [ii]. The book then muft be [e] As was Zalach Eddin, ufually (tiled Saladin, fultan of the Mamalukes : who bore the name of Job, as did alfo his father. Vid. Elmecin. Hid. Saracen. Job appears alfo to be mentioned by Ariftotle in his Differtation de Magnimdine Animalium. There are even now traditionary accounts concerning the place of Job's abode. Vid. Thevenot's yoyage, p. 447. Le Roque Voyages de Syrie. torn. i. p. 239. [f] Ezek. xiv. 14. £g] James v. 11. Vid. alfo Tobit ii. 12, 15. in Vulgate. Clemen. Epift, ad Cor. ch. xvii. and Araft, ap. Eufeb. Pr j Chap, iv. 18. [ eJ Chap, xii, 16. x\v. 4. xv. 14. xxv, 4. xxvi. I J. xxxi. 53. many, OF THE BOOK OF JOB. 23£ many, both Jewrfh aim iftian writers [f], that Job and his friends were em,, "d by a prophetic ipirit: as certain y ibme few per ions among the Gentiles were [g] ; and the conviction that Job was to be coniidered as a patriarchal prophet, was pro- bably the inducement, which influenced the Jews to admit, his work into the canon of their fcripture, if we fuppofe it to have been written by himfelf ; and not to have been compiled by an infpired au- thor of their own nation. Job and his friends were unqueftionably diftin- guifhed by extraordinary marks of God's favour; and we are authorized by the book to confider them as ibmetimes favoured by divine revelations. Eliphaz received inftruction, " from the virions of the night [h]»" and heard the voice of a ipirit, in fecret ftill whifpers, like the " ftill finall voice" which Elijah heard [i]. Elihu alfo felt a divine power [k] ; but Job himfelf appears to have been inverted with pecu- [f] Patrick's Appendix to his Paraphrafe. St. Auftin calls Job " Exiraius Prophetarum." [c] As Balaam, whom the Jews conceived to have been the fame perfon with Elihu. -[h] Job iv. 13, 16. Hence R..S0I. Jarchi was led to- remark, that the Shechinah was upon Eliphaz. [1] 1 Kings xix. 12. [k] Chap, xxxii. 8, 18. xxxiii. 15, 16. The name of Elihu. v.-hich lignilies ,( He is my God," and other circumflance's, have led fome writers to confider him as a reprefentative of the Meffiah7 but it muff detract from the dignity of his character to find that he condemns with too much feverity, and even miitates the fenti- -ments of Job. 5 liar 240 . OF THE BOOK OF JOB* liar dignity; and he-enjoyed prse-eminent diitinclions above the Gentile prophets, God fpoke to him 11 out of the whirlwind [l] ;" and it has been fup- pofed, from the fifth verle of the forty-fecond chap- ter, that he beheld the manifestation of the divine prefence : as perhaps, in a glorious cloud, for lb the ieventy underftood it. He undoubtedly in many places, fpeaks by the fuggeftion of the Holy Spirit ; and expreiles himfelf concerning the doclrine of gratuitous justification [m], and of a future itate, with a clearnels and information that were evidently the remit of prophetic apprehenfion. We can, indeed, attribute the precife and emphatic declaration con- tained in the nineteenth chapter, to nothing but im- mediate revelation from God; and muft, agreeably to the opinion of the moft judicious writers, ancient and modern, confider it as an evident profession of faith in a Redeemer [x], and of entire confidence in a refurrection and future judgment [o]. Having [l] So the fplrit defcended on the apoftles at the feaft of Pen- tecoft, " fuddenly, with a rufhing mighty wind.'' [m] Chap. ix. 2, 3. xxv. 4. Hodges's enquiry into the defign of the Eook of Job. [n] It is not neceffary from this expreffion to conclude, that tl myftery of the redemption was revealed to Job; but only that he entertained a confolatory afTurance of fome future ; ige, who 'Tiould appear to deliver mankind from the curfe rnd to judgf" the world in rightcoufnefs. [o] Chap. xix. 25 — 29. Some Commentators, it is true, contider this pafTage as expreflive of Job's confidence only in a prefent reltoration; which is. to rcfhicl the cxpreffions, in "3 mofb OF THE BOOK OF JOB. 241 Having obierved thus much with refpeft to the period in which Job may be iuppoieel to have lived, it may with more facility be coniidered at what time, und by whom his hiftory mould i'eem likely to have been moil unauthorized manner, and to interpret fcripture upon preconceived notions. Patrick fuppofes this temporal reftora- tion to be typical of a future refurrection : profeifing to follow St. Jerom's authority ; but in the place alluded to, St. Jerom (or the author of the commentaries under his name) does not confine the words to a figurative prediction. He fays abfolutely, that job in this paffage, " refurredionem futuram prophetat in fpi- ritu," prophefieth in the fpirir the future refurredion. And though in other places St. Jerom admits, with all writers, a double fenfe of fcripture, it by no means follows that he does fo in this place ; where, indeed, only a fingle fenfe could be intended, for Job had uniformly declared his defpondence as to the prefent life. St. Jerom likewife, in his epiftle to Paulinus, affirms, that Job here prophefies the refurreftion of the body in terms as clear and exact as ever were ufed. " Refurre&ionem corporum fie prophetat ut nullus de ea vel manifeftius vel cautius fcrip- ferit." Vid. alfo, Epift. 61. ad Pammach. This remarkable paflage is fuppofed by the Jews to relate to the reftoration of happinefs in a future life : and certainly it contains a manifeft and direct prophecy of the future refurrection of the body, and of the judgment of the world by Chrifl : as the folemnity of the. introduction ; the tenor of Job's difcourfe worked up to its higheft pitch ; the replies of his friends ; and every cxprefiion (as faithfully tranflated in our Bible) demonftrate. We can- not reftrict the prophecy to a confidence in a temporal reftora- tion, without abrogating the obvious fenfe of the words ; and without confidering them as utterly extravagant and unmean- ing. Wherefore (hould '•' they be graven with an iron pen, and with lead in the rock for ever r" How, " after worms mould have deftroyed his body/' could Job " fee God in the fiefh," except in a future life? Why, laftly, did he mention R • ' that 2$2 OF THE BOOK OF JOB. been written. Upon this fubje6t, it is not neceffary to enter into an examination of the various argu- ments produced by different authors, in fupport of their feveral opinions ; but it may be obferved, that fome have conceived the book to be the production of Job [p] himielf; or of Eiihu [q] ; while many have attributed it to Mofes [u] ; and others to later prophets ; as to Solomon [s] ; and to Ifaiah [t]. The moft probable opinion is, that it was compofed from fuch memorials as Job himielf, or his friends, might have left in the Syriac or Arabic language. that his " Redeemer mould ftand at the latter day upon the earth," and that i( his own eyes mould behold him," unlefs to declare his affurance of a future refurrection and judgment ? To the unexampled mifery of Job, and through him to the reft of mankind, God might vouchfafe the firft explicit revelation of a future retributive judgment, and the firft diftindl view' of a fpiri- tual Redeemer. See chap. xiii. 15^ and Peters's Critic. Differt. on Job. [p] Orig. Cont. Celf. Gregor. Mag. in Job. Lib. I. cap. i. Suidas in Job. Ifidor. Hifp. Sixt. Senens. Hottinger, Walton> Bochart, Huet, &c. [q] Light foot fuppofes Elihu to have been the author, be- caufe in the beginning of his difcourfe he appears to fpeak in that character ; but he is only introduced, as are the other friends, in the firft perfon, for the fake of ornament. [r] Bava Bathra, cap. 1. f. 15. Kimchi, Methodius spud Photium. R. Levi Ben. Gerfon inPnef. Aben-Ezra ad cap. ii. it. Huet. Demonft. Evan. Polychron. and Julian. Halicar. ap. Nicset. in Catena in Job. Hieron. Epift. ad Paul. [s] Gregor. Nazianz. Orat. ad Exsequat. Harduin in Chron. V. Teft. [t] Philo Codercus. Pra?f. in Job. Scaliger. Grotius. Le Clerc. Warburton attributes it to Ezra ; and Garnett to Ezckiel. The OF THE BOOK OF JOB. 243 The work is written in a ftyle agreeable to the genius of the Arabic language. It is fublime, lofty, com- pretfed, and full of figures and allufive images. It contains, likewife, much of that profound philofophy, and elevated turn of thought, for which the Arabians were as remarkable [u], as for the dignity and alle- gorical caft of their language. It may be added, likewife, that fome of the images and remarks in this book appear to have been drawn from circumftances peculiar and appropriate to Arabia [x] ; and that it has every characleriftic of the moft venerable anti- quity, and all the appearance of an original patri- archal work [y]. [u] r Kings iv. 30. Jerem. xlix. 7. Obad. ver. 8. Baruck iii. 13. [x] Chap. vi. 15 — 17. xxxvii. 9, 22. Vid. alfo, chap. ix. 26. where Schultens tranflates the word niMN, by " naves pa- pyro vel arundine textas ;" and fuppofes it to fignify thofe fhips made of cane, or the papyrus, that were ufed on the Nile. Vid. Lucan. Lib. IV. 1. 13c, 136. [y] Grey's Pref. to Job. Origen Cont. Celf. Eufeb. 8c Selden upon Rom. ii. 14. Hottinger Smegna Orient. Job men- tions only the moft ancient fpecies of idolatry, the worfhip of the fun and moon. Vid. Chap. xxxi. 26, 27. and the moft ancient kind of writing, by fculpture. His riches are reckoned by his cattle ; and it is by no means clear, that the word Kejitah, tranflated a piece of money, chap, xliii. 1 1 . does not mean a iamb, Vid. Spanheim, and Calmet in Gen. xxxiii. 19. Or if it mean money, there is no reafon to fuppofe that it might not be in ufe in the time and country affigned to Job. Comp. alfo, chap, xliii. 8. with Numb, xxiii. 1. Bp. Lowth confiders the ftyle as bearing evident marks of the moft remote antiquity, Vid. Pnelea, 32. R % That £44 OP THE BOOK OF JOfi. That the book is drawn up in a poetical form, and adorned with poetical embellifhments, is no proof that it was not written in great part by Job ; for though it be inconiiftent with the violence of outrageous paffion, or the freedom of animated dia- logue, to fpeak in numbers ; yet there is no reafon why Job may not be fuppofed to have amufed him- felf, when reftored to eafe and profperity, by recol- lecting the circumftances of his affliction ; and to have defcribed them with metrical arrangement ; it being cuftomary in the earlier ages to compofe the moft important works in fome kind of meafure [z]; and confident with our notions of infpiration, to fup- pofe that its fuggeftions might be conveyed in the captivating drefs of poetry. How far Job reduced the work towards its prefent form, cannot be de- termined ; it is contended only, that he left iufficient materials for fome Hebrew writer to digeft it as it now appears. As the Hebrew and Arabic language are derived from the fame origin : both being deduced from Abraham's descendants, among whom the He- brew was preferved, and the Arabic originated, they may well be fuppofed to approximate towards their fource, and to have much refembled each other; as indeed they now do, with great affinity [a]. It is therefore poffible, that Job might have written the book in the language in which it now exifts [b] ; the [z] Ifidore Orig. L. I. 27. [a] Hunt's Clavis Pentateuchi. [b] All the defcendants of Abraham, the Ifraelites, Idu- xnsans, and Arabs, probably continued long to ufe the fame language OF THE EOOK OF JOB. 245 the laft verfes only being added by fome prophet who received it into the Jewilh canon [c]. But if we conceive that the Hebrew language mult have differed ib much from the Arabic, in the time of Job, that what he wrote mult have been tranflated for the ui'e of the Hebrews, we may fuppofe it to have been compoied by fome inlpired writer among the Hebrews ; who retained thole Syriac and Arabic expremons which are interfperfed through the work, as appropriate ornaments of the hiitory, and as tend- ing, perhaps, to facilitate the verification. Some critics, indeed, confider thefe expreffions as foreign corruptions introduced into the Jewiih language after the captivity ; and therefore imagine that the work muft have been compoied after thole of David and Solomon ; but what they confider as Chaldaifms, are language till feparation and gradual innovations produced a change. The names of Iihmael's, Keturah's, Efau's, and Job's families, are pure Hebrew. See Sir William Jones's viiith Anniverfary Difcourfe, and vol. iii. of Afiatic Refearches. [c] It is uncertain when the book was received into the canon. Some think that it was admitted with Solomon's wri- tings by the men of Hezekiah ; but probably it was inferted much earlier. In the Hebrew it is placed immediately after the Proverbs; but in the Septuagint, and by St. Jerom, it was placed as in our Bibles. Peters fuggefts, that it might have been prefented to Solomon by the Queen of Sheba ; and Weiley, on a conjecture as (lender, fanfies that it might have been procured by Elimelech and Naomi, when in Moab, which was in Idumaea, and near the fpot where he conceives Job to have lived. The place which it holds in the book affords no clue to difcover the period of its admiffion. It was, however, doubtlefs received before the time of Ezekiel. Vid. Mercer, in Proverbs. R 3 by i 246 OF THE BOOK OF JOB. by others, with more probability, reprefented to be only Syriac and Arabic expreffions [c]. The book then was probably either written by Job, or compofed from materials which he left, by fome writer who lived foon after the period of the hiftory herein defcribed. They who diipute this an- tiquity, maintain, that befides the pretended ChaU daifms which have been before reprefented as Arabic and Syriac expreffions, they difcover fome paiTageS in the book which are imitations of particulars in the works of David and of Solomon ; but if the coincidences produced in fupport of this aifertion be not accidental, they prove nothing ; fince there is equal reafon to fuppofe, that David and Solomon might have borrowed from Job, as other prophets certainly did [d] : fuch imitations of expreffions for the communication of fnnilar fentiments being cuf- tomary among the facred writers. If, however, we admit, as fome have contended, that the book contains allufions to the Mofaic laws, and alio to circumftances and events of the JewiiTi hiftory ; and that thefe allufions are not merely fuch as refer to particulars with which Job might [c] Schultens, Grey's Job, p. 12. It has been difputed whether the names of Job's daughters are of Hebrew or Ara- bic extraction. But as both languages have the fame roots, the difpute is idle. The word Jehovah, which was known only to the Jews, might have been applied to the deity by the compiler or tranflator. [d] Huet. Prop, IV. paffirrv OF THE BOOK OF JOB. !247 be acquainted [e] ; nor confiit in expreffions that Moles, if the compiler or tranflator of the book, might have introduced [fJ, luppofmg him to have compofed it after the delivery of the Law ; though luch ailufions cannot be allowed to invalidate the an- tiquity which is here attributed to Job himfelf ; or to difprove that he might have furniflied the chief ma- terials for the work ; they certainly will prove that it was compofed in its preient form, long after the pe- riod in which the hiltory muft have occurred ; and that it was written or translated by an author later than Moles. As a matter of opinion, however, it may be obferved, that none fuch alluiions do appear as ihould influence us to reject the pretenfions of Job, or of Mofes [g] ; none certainly that Ihould [e] The fentiments in chap. xvii. £. xxi. ig. xxii. 6. xxiv. 7, 9, 10. and xxxi. 9, 10, 28. produced by Warburton and others as ailufions to the law, which efcaped the author, Inight furely be general remarks. All the fuppofed ailufions to the flood, and other particulars defcribed in Genefis, only prove that Job was acquainted with thole traditions which the defendants of Abraham muft have known, without the Mofaic account. Job might have heard likewife, of the miracles in Egypt, and at the Red Sea, if we fuppofe him to refer to them in chap, xxxviii. 15. ix. 7, 8. xii. 15. xxvi. 12. as likewife of the wandering of the Ifraelites in the wildernefs, and of fome other contemporary events, at which he is imagined (though perhaps without furhcient reafon) to hint. Vid. chap. xii. 24. xxxi. 24. xxix. 25. [f] The expreffions in chap. xx. 17. xxii. 22. xxix. 46. xv. 17, 18. might be general, or introduced by Mofes. The nine- teenth verfe of the fifteenth chapter may apply to Noah and his fons. Vid. Peters's Difiert. on Job, Part I. fed. 2. [g] Huet. Prop. IV. in Job. R 4 incline £4S OF THE BOOfc OF JOB. incline us to believe that the book was not written long before the captivity [h] ; fince of the pretended aliufions to the regal hiitory of the Jews, none are £o evident as to juitify any conclufion to the contrary; and there appears, indeed, to be no fufficient real'on, notwithstanding every pafiage has been critically ana- lyfed for that purpofe, to luppole that the book was not written or tranflated nearer the period of the hiitory which it defcribes. The opinion, indeed, moft anciently and generally entertained was, that it was compofed by Mofes ; who miiiht have collected the information which it [h] The pafTage in chap, xxxiii. 15 — 26. has been imagined to be defcriptive of Gcd:s proceedings with Hezekiah, 2 Kings xx. 2 Chron. xxxii. as that in chap. xxxv. 8, 12. has been fuppofed to coincide with the account of the puniihment of Manafieth, 2 Chron. xxxiii. 11 — 13. fo likewife the denun- ciation in chap, xxxiv. 20. has been represented as allufive to the fudden deitruction of Sennacherib's army, 2 Kings xix. 3^. But thefe pafTages of Job contain only general descriptions of God's judgments, that might eafily be drawn to apply to any inftance ; and the lad might rather be fuppofed to refer to the destruction of the firft-born in Egypt, Exod. xii. 29. The pretended refemblance between the ^writing of Hezekiah, Jfa. xxxviii. 10 — 17. and the lamentation of Job, chap. vii. 1—8, is only a cafual fimilarity in th§ complaints of mifery. It muft have been the true fpirit of theory that could draw any argument from a comparifon between the defcription of Job's frienas, chap. xxx. 1 — 8. and the account of the Cutheans and Samaritans in Nehemiah iv. 1 — 4. or that could fancy that the reprefentation of Satan's appearance, Job. i. 6. &c. was defigned on the model of Zechariah's vifion, Zech. iii. 1 — 5. See other refcmblances as fanciful or accidental, in Warburton's ittyl Garnett's allegories, contained, OF THE BOOK OF JOB. 24$ contained, in the land of Midian [i] ; and no ob- jection to this opinion can be drawn from the place which is alligned to the book in the Bible, as no at- tention appears to have been paid to chronology in this arrangement. The book, however, whether written originally in the Arabic, or in the Hebrew langruajre ; whether compofed or tranflated by Mofes, or any fubfequent prophet, is unqueftionably to be confidered as an infpired work, imce it was certainly in the Jewifti canon. It is not, indeed, particularly mentioned by Jofephus: becaufe the hiftory which it contains was totally unconnected with the Hebrew affairs, of which he profefTed exclufively to treat [k]. It was, how- ever, included in the catalogue of twenty-two books, which he afficmed as the number contained in the O facred lilt [l]. It is cited as fcriptural by the [i] Origen Cont, Celf. Lib. VI. and in Job. Some have conceived that Mofes produced it to confole the Ifraelites under :he hardfhips of their Egyptian bondage. Vid. Origen Com. Bava Bathra, cap. i. Julian. Halicar. ap. Nicast. The book contains fome paflages that refemble the hymn of Mofes. Com, pare chap. xxix. 2 — 6. with Deut. xxxii. 7 — 14. Grey's Prarf. ad Lib. Job, and Anfw. to Warburton. But if Mofes were the author, he probably wrote it in the wildernefs. No argument can be drawn from the fuppofed refemblance, or difference of ftile, between the Book of Job, and the writings of Mofes, as the fubject affords fuch fcope for fancy, and fuch oppofite opinions have been entertained on the fubjec"t. [k] Procem. Antiq. Jud. [l] Jofeph. cont. Apion, Lib. I. apoftles, 250 OF THE BOOK OF JOB. apoftles [xu] ; and was univerfally received as canoni- cal by all the fathers, councils, and churches [n]< Though the book of Job is by no means to be confidered as a drama written with fictitious contri- vance ; or as refembling in its conftru6tion, any of thofe Grecian compoiitions which it preceded fo long ; it may ftill be represented as fo far dramatic, as the parties are introduced fpeaking with great fidelity of character ; and as it deviates from ftricc hiftorical accuracy for the fake of effect. It is a complete, though peculiar work : and regular in its fubject. and the diftribution of its parts [o]. Mr. Locke juftly pronounces it to be a perfect poem; the two firit chapters containing a proie argument, which he conceives (though without fumcient reafon) to have been added by the compiler ; as alfo the naming of the feveral fpeakers, the want of which leaves the Canticles in great obfcurity. The inter- locutory parts of the book appear to be written in a loofe kind of metre. Many of Job's difcourfes are ftri6t and perfect elegies [p]. St. Jerom maintained, that the book is written from the third verfe of the Third chapter, to the fixth verfe of the forty- fecond chapter, in hexameter verfes, with fome occafional variations, according to the idiom of the language [q]. Of this, however, there are no fumcient in- [m] i Cor. iii. 19. James v. u. [n] Grcgor. Praef. in Job. [o] Lowth's Pra?l. Poet, xxxiii. [p] Ghap. iii. vi. vii. x. xii. xvii. xix. xxix. xxx. [q] Lowth's Prscleft. xiv. and Shuckford's Cor.nccfc. vol. ii- ch. ix. Llieron. Pryef. in Lib. Job. dications. OF THE BOOK OF JOB. 251 dications. The conclufion, which relates the final prosperity and death of Job, muft have been added by the compiler. The many excellent qualities of Job have rendered him to all ages an illuftrious example of righteouf- nefs. Eufebius has juftly remarked, that he was fo diftinguiihed for wii'dom, as to have found out by divine grace, a conduct not inimitable to the evange- lical doftrine of our Saviour ; and it appears from the paffage, which in the Septuagint is annexed to this book [r], that the reverence which the Jews entertained for his character, had given rife to a tra- dition, by no means incredible, according to the opinion of Theophanes, that Job was one of thofe faints who rofe out from their graves at the refurrec- tion of Chrift; a tradition which, if unfupported by any authority, may be ftill coniidered as bearing a merited teftimony to his fuperior righteouihefs [s]. To form a perfect notion of the great excellence of Job's character, we muft contemplate him in every viciffitude of his eventful life ; and confider his conduct under every temptation of hazardous profperity, or aggravated diftrefs. We muft judge [r] The addition in the Septuagint runs thus: yeffttoflxt J* asuhiv a.ya.Tr,Gi^ct.\ avlov fA£$ wv ctva.r>wv o xuftof. The author of which muft have believed that J&b defcribes his affurance of a future refurrection in this book, as particularly, in the contefted paffage ; for \vherc elfe in the Old Teftament is it written that Job fhould rife again ? [s] The book of Job, it is faid, was read in the ancient church on fall days, and at Eafter : Job being coniidered as a figure of Chrift. Vid. Origen in Job, Of $52 OF THE BOOK OF JO&. of him, not from the unguarded expreffions which his fuffe rings occafionally provoked [u] ; but from the deliberate ftrains of his piety ; and his patient iubmiffion to the divine will: under every poffible affliction but the pangs of guilt, and the terrors of defpair. If the mtftaken feverity of his friends fome- times provoked him to tranfgrefs the decency of an humble and modeft doubt of his own innocence, yet reproof and recollection inftantly called him to a confefiion of unworthinefs, and to a becoming re- (ignation to the divine decrees [x]. It was, indeed, in vindication of his own character that he dilplayed the fair defcription of his life: eminently diftinguifhed as it was for integrity and benevolence : and it has been a want of fumcient attention to the fcope of the dialogue, and to the firm principles to which Job, notwithstanding his occafional impatience, ultimately adheres, that has caufed fuch ftrange milconceptions as have been entertained with refpecl to his character [y] and difcourfe. To obviate, however, all erro- neous objections to an example which the facred writers have confidered as excellent [z]; and to pre- clude falfe notions concerning fentimentsreprefented as confiftent with the divine wifdom [a], it is necef- fary to advert to the provocations which Job had re* [u] Chap. vi. 26. [x] Chap. viii. 20. xxxiv. 31, 32. xl. 4, 6. xlii. 3, 4. [y] Garnett and Warburton. [z] Ezek. xiv. 14. James v. 11. Vid. alfo, Tobit ii. 12. ver. 15, Vulgate. [a] Chryfoii. Horn. v. ad Pop. Antioch, 7 ceived, OF THE BOOK OF JOB. 253 ceived, and to the complicated diftrefs that discon- certed his mind, and irritated his paffions. His friends, who appear to have vifited him with cha- ritable intentions [b], did in reality only aggravate his misfortunes; for having taken up a common, but miftaken notion, that profperity and afflictions were dealt out in this life according to the deferts of men [c], they accule him of having merited his extra- ordinary misfortunes by fome concealed guilt [d] ; and are led on by the heat of contention to " vex his foul by their reproaches, and to break him in pieces with words." Job, folicitous to refute the charge, and to vindicate the ways of Providence, affirms, on the contrary, that adverlity is no proof of divine wrath, but often defigned as a trial [e]. That in this life the good and the bad indifcriminately flourifh, and often periih in promifcuous deftruc- tion [f]; and that, confequently, there muft be fome period for judgment and equal retribution, for which the wicked are referved [c]. With refpecl; to him- felf, he difclaims all fear from reflecting on his part conduct; and then defcribes with fomewhat too much of pride and confidence, the excellency of thofe virtues, with which he had " arrayed" his profperity. With an impatience likewife, that his [b] Chap. ii. 1 1 — 13. [c] Chap. iv. 7, 8. [d] Chap. iv. 7, 8, 9. viii. 13. xviii. 21. xxii. 5. [e] Chap. vii. 18. xxiii. 10. [f] Chap. ix. 22 — 24. xii. 6. xxl. 7 — 15. [g] Chap, xxi. 30. xxvi. 6. xxvii, 8, 9, 19. xxxi. 3. Sufferings, C5* OF THE BOOK OF JOB. fufferings, great as they were, could not juftify, he profeiTes a thorough defpondence and difregard with refpecl to the prefent life ; earneftly wifhes [h] for death, and appeals to the decifions of a future judg- ment for juititication [i]. For this aflfumption, and for this impatience, he is juftly cenfured by Elihu ; whole " wrath was kindled againft Job, becaufe he juftilied himfelf rather than God." Elihu, however, reprehends him with rather too much harihnefs, and in fome meafure mifrepreients his fentiments [k]. Yet inafmuch as Elihu had refted the equity of the divine difpenfations on the acknowledged attributes of God, he had reafoned juftly as far as he had pro- ceeded ; and therefore, perhaps, is only tacitly [l] cenfured by the deity, when God pronounces that " Job had fpoken the thing that was right." God even purfues the argument of Elihu, and in a ftile of inimitable majefty, proclaims his own uncontrolled power, and unfathomable wifdom to the difcoun- [h] Chap. vi. 8 — n. vii. 7. ix. 21. x. I. xvi. 22. xvii. 1 1 — 1 6. Thefe pafTages fully prove, that Job did not look for- ward to any temporal reftoration ; of which he declares alfo the Improbability, and laments only that he fhould not live to fee his reputation vindicated. Vid. chap. xiv. 7 — 14. vii. 8 — 10* x» 21, 22. Peters's Difiert. on Job, Part II. feci. 4. Scott's Verfion of Job, Appendix II. [1] Chap. xiii. 15 — 19. xiv. 12 — 15. xvi. 19. xvii. i^. xxiii. 3 — 10. xxvi. 6. xxx. 23, 24. xxxi. 14. all confidently with chap. xix. 25 — 29. [k] Chap, xxxiii. 8, 9. xxxiv. 5, 9, 35. [l] Some have conceived that the opening of God's fpeech was addreffed as a reproof to Elihu, though the fubftance of the anfwer was defigned for Job. 2 tenancing OF THE BOOK OF JOB. 255 tenanting of human knowledge. After the moft awful and impreffive representation of iiis own glo- rious works and attributes [mJ, and after ibme re- prehenlion of Job, for his arrogant profeflion of in- nocence, the Almighty condemns the falfe reafoning of the three friends, and ratifies the conclution which Job had made with refpecl; to a future judgment [n]. Such is the fcope of the difcourfe, which finely unfolds God's deligns in dealing out afflictions to mankind [o] ; which, when it firft appeared, mult have conveyed truths that unaffifted reafon had not learnt; and have been well calculated to refute the abfurd notions which then began to rife concerning the two independent principles of good and evil [p]. When the book was received into the Jewiih canon, it muft likewife have been well adapted to counteract any erroneous conceptions that might have been formed from a confideration of the temporal promiies of the Law : which though they covenanted prefent reward to the Hebrew nation, confidered as a com- [m] Chap. xl. 8. io. . [n] Job had fpoken right by having recourfe to the arrange- •ments of a future judgment. If the divine juftice did not reft on this foundation, it muft have executed its decrees in the pre- fent life, as the friends of Job maintained. God does not con- defcend to explain the equity of his own counfels, any farther than by approving the convictions of Job; this was never quef- tioned in the controverfy, but defended on both fides though on different principles. [°J Job's character was fully proved and perfected by this trial, and the pride and impatience of his temper corrected. [p] Ufe and Intent of Prophecy, p, 207. munity, toG OF THE BOOK OF JOB. munity, by no means allured to individuals a juft and exact, remuneration in the preient life [q.]. The book likevvife admirably ferves to prove, that the power of temptation, allowed to evil fpirits, is re- ftricledin merciful conlideration of human weaknefs. It exhibits in an interefting hiftory, the viciffitudes of human affairs. It illuftrates the danger of con- tention ; the ingratitude and bafenefs of common friendfhip [r] ; the vigilant care of providence ; and the neceflity of relignation to the divine will. Through the whole work we difcover religious in- ftruction mining forth amidft the venerable fimplicity of ancient manners. It every where abounds with the nobleft fentiments of piety, uttered with the fpirit of infpired convi6tion. It is a work unrivalled for the magnificence of its language, and for the beautiful and fublime images which it prefents [s]. In the wonderful fpeech of the Deity, every line de- lineates his attributes, every fentence opens a picture of fome grand object in creation [t] characterized by [q] This is evident from the relations of facred hiftory; from the complaints of the Pfalmift ; and from the fufferings and dc. nunciations of the Prophets. [r] Job xlii. 1 1. [s] The book, in fome of its beauties of imagery and defcrip. tion, has been compared with, and juftly preferred to, the works of Homer. Vid. Wefiey's Diff. VI. ex Gnom. Homer. Jacob du Port. Burke on the Sublime, P. 2. Se&. 4, c. [t] Various have been the conjectures concerning the Be- hemoth, and the Leviathan, which are fo forcibly defcribed in this book. The former is by fome fuppofed to have been the elephant, by others, the hippopotamus ; the. latter i» ufualJv OF THE LOOK OF JOB. i;y its moft ftriking features. Add to this, that its px&phetic parts reflect much light on the eeconomy of God"s mo raj government; and every admirer of facred antiquity, every enquirer after religious in- ftruetion, will ierioully rejoice, that the enraptured fentence of Job [u] is realized to a more effectual and imforefeeii accomplifnment: that while the me- morable records of antiquity have mouldered from the rock, the prophetic affurance and ientiments of Job are graven in fcriptures, that no time mall alter, no changes (hall efface. ufuelly reprefented to have been the crocodile. Bat as the de- icriptions exceed the chara&ef of all animals now known, they t.ave been conceived to contain fome myftery. It is ore defign cf fcripture to convince mankind of ignorance ; and difficulties^ while they exercife fagacity, inculcate the ufeful ielTon of humility, Vid. Bochart Hierozoicon. Lib. V. c. xv, Chap, xix, 2^. wF [ 258 ] OF THE BOOK of PSALMS. THE Book of Pfalms, which in the Hebrew i$ entitled Sepher Tehillem [a], that is, the Book of Hymns, or Praiies of the Lord, contains the productions of different writers [b]. Thei'e pro- ductions are called, however, the Pfalms of David, becaufe a great part of them was compoied by him, who for his peculiarly excellent fpirit, was diftin- guifhed by the title of " the Pfalmilt [c]." Some of them were perhaps penned before, and fome after the time of David ; but all of them by perfons under the influence of the Holy Ghoft, fmce all were [a] In the New Teftament it is called by Chrift and his apof- tles, B»'o>.c? ■^xt.u.uv. Luke xx. 4.2. Acts i. 20. The word Pfalter is derived from ^cctlr.ttov, pfalterv, a mufical inftrument, ftiled Nabal in Hebrew. it was ft rung and made of wood in the fti!e of a harp, and in the fhape of a Greek delta, A. Vid. 1 Kings x. 12. Atha.v.. Lib. TV. cap. xxiii. and Calmet's. DJiT. fur les Inftrurji. [b] Hieron. ad Cyprian. & Sophron. Hilar. Prxf. in Pfal, Geriebr. in Pfal. i. R. David Kjmchi . [cj_ 2 Sam. xxiii. 1, judged OF THE BOOK OF PSA I.MS. $5$ judged worthy to be inferted into the canon of iacred writ Ezra probably collected them into one book, and placed them in the order which they now pre- serve, after they had been previoufly collected in part [d]. It appears that the 150 Pialms therein contained were lelected from a much greater number, which, it may be prcfumed, were not fuggefted by the Holy Spirit The Leviteswere, indeed, enjoined to prefer ve in the temple [e], all fuch hymns as might be compofed in honour of God ; and of thele, doubtlefs, there muft have been a large quantity ; but fuch only could be admitted into the canon as were evidently infpired compofitions ; and we may judge of the fcrupuious Severity with which they were examined, finee the numerous hymns of Solo- mon were rejected ; and even, as it is laid, fome of David's himfelf were thought unentitled to inlertion [f]. The authority of thofe, however, which we now pofTefs, is eftablimed, not only by their rank among the iacred writings [o], and by the unvaried teftimony of every age, but likewife by many in- fo] 2 Chron. xxix. 25 — 28. They were Co collected in the time of Chrift. Vid. Luke xx. 42. The fecond Ffnlm is cited by St. Paul in the order in which it now Hands, Acts xiii. 33, Vid. Athan. in Synop. torn. ii. p. Sf>. Hilar. Prol. in Lib. Ezra iii. 10, 1 1. & Proleg. in Pfalm. Eufcb. ad Pfal. Ixxxvi. [t] Jcfcph. Antiq. Lib. III. c. i. & Lib. V. c. i. [v] The prophets were not always empowered to write by the fuggeftion of the fpirit ; though St. Ambrofe thought that David did always poffefs the gift of prophecy. Vid. Prsef. in Pfalm i, l Sam. xvi. 13. [c] They are cited as the Law. John x, 34. xii. 34. S g trin% £&"0 OF THE BOOK OF PSALM.3. trinfic proofs of inspiration. Not only do theybreathisS through every part a divine Spirit of eloquence, but they contain numberleis iiluftrious prophecies that were remarkably accomplished, and that are fre- quently appealed to by the evangelical writers. The (acred character of the whole book is eltabliihed by the teftimony of our Saviour, and his apoltles; who in various parts of the New Teltament appropriate the predictions of the PSalms as obvioully appoiite to the circumStances of their lives, and as intentionally preconcerted to deicribe them. Yet, as Dr. Allix juftly remarks, though the lacrcd writers have fixed the fenfe of near fifty Pfalms [h], they have by no means cited ail that they might have cited ; but have only furniilied a key to their hearers, making appli- cations incidently as opportunities occurred. David has, by the later Jews, been reckoned among the Hagiographi [i] ; not being conlidered by them as a prophet any more than Daniel, becaufe he lived differently from the prophets, and amid it the magnificence of a court. He was fuppofed, how- ever, by them, to have prophefied by the infpiration of the Holy Ghoft, without any exterior impulfe, [h] Nc.v Teftamcn*-, pafllm. [i] R. Albo, Maam. III. c. x. Kimchi Madrafh vSillim, vol. ii. The Jewiih gradations of prophecy arc often very fancifully de- termined ; but David muft be pronounced a prophet by the Jewiih rule, fince he is a true prophet who is not deceived in foretelling future events. Vid. Mairoon. de Fundam. Lcgis. cap. x. (j 2. Deut. xviii. zz. Jercm. xxviii. c)« Maimon. More Nevoch. Par. II. cap. xiv. but of tut: book of psalms, zGl but from fome internal influence urging, and en- abling him to fpeak and utter instructions on divine, as well as human fabjorts, with more than his -wonted power*, and in a iiile iuperior to that of the pro- ductions of human abilities. But the prophetic cha- racter of David is eftablifhed on much higher au- thority, and the importance and clearnefs of his pre- dictions demcnftrate his title to the higheft rank among the prophets [it]. Many attempts have been made to ascertain precilely which Pfalms were de- rived from David's pen, as likewife to diicover the authors of the others. Some are laid to have been compofed by Moles ; and fome were written in, or after the captivity [l]. It is neceiTary to refer to the commentators at large for various opinions upon this fubjc6t; and without dilating, to canvafs the date and author of each individual Pfalm, or to fpecify the circumftances that occafioned its production, it may be briefly obferved, that the Talmudilts [m] and Maforetic writers admit, as authors of the Pfalms, Adam, Melchifedec, Abraham, Mofes, the ions of Korah, David, Solomon, Afaph, Jeduthun, and Ettian; and that Calmet, after a judicious inveftiga- tion of particulars, has adopted nearly the following arrangement, if we conlider them as diftributed in the Hebrew, and in our translation. [k] 2 Sam. xxi. i. xxiii. 2. 2 Chron. xxix. 25. Neheiru xii. 24. Ezck. xxxiv. 23. Matt. xiii. 35. xxii. 43. xxvii. 35. Mark xii. 36. Acts i. 16. ii. 30. iv. 25. Heb. iii. 7. [l] Lightfoot Chron. of Old Tell. Maius (Econ. V. TdU Hammond's, Patrick's, and Home's Commentaries. i m] Eava Bathra, cap. i, Kimchi, &c. S 3 UNDr.15. 252 OF THE BOOK OF PSALMS, Under the firit head, are twelve Pfalms, of which the chronology is uncertain; viz. i. iv. v. viii. xix. lxxxi. xc. xci. xcix. ex. exxxix. cxlv. The firft of thefe was probably compofeci by David, or Ezra; the Ixxxift. [n] is attributed to Al'aph; the xcth. to Moles; and the cxth. to David. The authors of the others are unknown, though fome of them are inicribed to David. Under the fecond head are included the Pfalms which were compofed by David, during the perlccu- tion carried on againft him by Saul, or other enemies ; thefe are in number twenty; viz. vii. xi. xvi. xvii. xviii. xxii xxxi. xxxiv. xxxv. lii. liv. lvi. Ivii, lviii, lix. lxiv. cix. cxl. cxli. cxlii. Under the third head are placed fuch as David compofed on different occafions, after his accefiioq to the throne; thele, which amount to forty-four, are as follow: ii. vi. ix. xii. xx. xxi. xxiii. xxiv. xxviii. xxix. xxxii. xxxiii. xxxviii. xxxix. xl. xli. Ii. Ix. Ixi, Ixii. lxiii. lxv. Ixviii. lxix. lxx. lxxxvi. xcv. xcvi. ci. ciii. civ. cv. cvi. cviii. cxviii. cxix. cxx. exxi. exxii, exxiv, exxxi. exxxiii. cxliii. cxliv, The fourth head contains thofe which were written by David during the rebellion of Abfalom, amount- ing to fix ; which are the iiid. xlii. xliii. Jv. lxxi, Ixxxiv. The fifth head includes thofe written from the death of Abfalom to the captivity; thefe, which ap- [>:] This -vas probably defigned to be fung in the Temple upon rhe feaft of Trumpets j as alfo at the feaft of Taber* racles, 4 pear OF THE BOOK OF PSA L.MS. £63 pear to be ten, are the xxxth. xlv. lxxii. lxxiv. lxxvi. Ixxviii. Ixxix. lxxxii. lxxxiii. exxxii. Of thefe, pro- bably, David compofed the xxxth. the lxxiid. and poflibly the Ixxviiith. The lxxvith. feems likely to have been produced after the miraculous deliver- _ ance from the Afiyrian army, in the days of Heze- kiah. The fixth head comprehends the Pfalms compofed during the diitrefles and captivities of the church ; thele were written chiefly by Alaph and Korah, and their descendants. They may be reckoned thirty in number, and are the xth. xiii. xiv. xv. xxv. xxvL xxvii. xxxvi. xxxvii. xliv. xlix. i. liii. lxvii. lxxiii. Ixxv. lxxvii. lxxx. lxxxviii. lxxxix. xcii. xciii. xeiv. cii. cxv. exxiii. exxv. exxix. exxx. exxxvii. To the laft head are affigned thofe hymns of joy and thankfgiving which were written, as well after other deliverances as upon the releafe from the Ba- byloniili captivity, and at the building and dedication of the temple. Thefe, which are twenty-eight, are the xlvith. xlvii. xlviii. lxvi. lxxxv. lxxxvii. xcvii. xcviii. c. cvii. cxi. cxii. cxiii. cxiv. cxvi. cxvii. exxvi. exxvii. exxviii. exxxii. exxxiv. exxxv. exxxvi. exxxviii. cxlvi. cxlvii. cxlviii. cxlix. cl. According to Calmet's account, from which this in fame refpects varies, onlv forty-five Pfalms are politively affigned to David ; though probably many more mould be afcribed to him. It is, however, of lefs confequence to determine precifely by whom the Holy Spirit delivered thefe oracles, iince we have indubitable evidence of the facred character of the S 4 whole 264- OF THE BOOK OF PSALMS. whole book ; for it is collectively cited in fcripture [o], and is prophetical in a! molt every part [p.]-; and feveral of thole perlbns who are. fuppoied to have contributed to the coinpoiition of the work, are ex-* prefsly reprefented as prophets in fcripture [q]. The name of David is prefixed to about feventy- three ; and many perions have collected from the latt verfeof thefeventy-fecondPfalm, which reports, that ' ■ the prayers of David, the lbn of Jeife, are ended," that David's hymns do there conclude; and if we confider that this Pfalm was probably produced on the eftablifhment of Solomon on the throne of his father, it is not unlikely that it contains the laft ef- fufions of David's prophetic fpirit [«] ; but as his compositions are not all placed together, many which follow in the order of the book, may have been writ- ten by him; and we may fuppofe him to have been the author of at leaft all thole which are not particu- [o] The evangelical writers cite the Pfalms in general under the name of David. [e] Gutheri Theolog. Proph. p. 98, Brentius ad 2 Jam, jxiii. 26. [o] Heman, Afaph, and Jedqthun, fuppofed authors of fome of the Pfalms, are in fcripture called feers, and faid to have prophefied. Vid. 2 Chron» xxix. 30. xxxv. 15. I Chrom 5cxv. 1 — 5. Vid, alfo 1 Kings ivf 30, 31, where Ethan (whom fome confider as the author of Pfal. lxxxviii. and lxxxix.) is fpoken of as eminent for wifdom. [r] In the profputt of the profperity of his fon's government, David, on the ftrength of divine promifes, breaks out intp an ffl ijr; 'paired defcription of the -duration, extent, and character p£ the kipgdon; of Chrift, Vid. ver, 7, u, 12, 17. Jarly OF THE BOOK OF PSALMS. 2uj larlv affigned to others, nor confiftcnt with his time- [s]. The Pfalms are certainly not arranged witli any regard to chronology [t], and many which fol- low the i'cventv-lecond in the order of the book, are infcribed with the name of David. It mult be obferved, however, that the titles prefixed to the Pfalms, fome of which are not in the Hebrew manu- icripts, are often of very queftionable authority; and fometimes undoubtedly not of equal antiquity with the text, being poihbly affixed as conjectural. They were not always defigned to point out the au- thor, but often apply to the muficians [u] appointed to let them to muiic. They likewife fometimes ap- pear to be only terms of inftruments [x], or direc- tions for the choice of tunes [y]. But it muft be [s] St. Peter cites the fecond Pfalm as David's, though it is not infcribed to him ; and others which have no title, were undoubtedly written by David. Comp. Pfal. xcv. 7, 8, with, Heb. iv. 7. Pfal. xcvi. with 1 Chron. xvi. 7, &c. Pfal. cv. witn 1 Chron. xvi. 8. Pfal. cvi. 47, 48, with 1 Chron. xvi. 35, 36. On the other hand, fome which have no title were not written by David, as exxxvii. which was not written till the Babylonifh captivity. [t] Hieron. in Jerem. xxv.' [u] Some of the names prefixed to the Pfalms are affigned to the Muficians whom David appointed. Vid. 1 Chron. xv. 16 — 22. xvi. 7. The word Lamnetzeach is fuppofed to mean, '* to the leader of the band." It is derived from Mnatzeach, which fignifies Overfeer. [x] As, perhaps, Nehiloth, Sheminith, Gitith, Michtam, Aijeleth Shehar, &c. Vid. Geirus ad Pfa. v. Michaelis, Sec. [y] As Neginoth. Vid. Burney's Hift. Muf. 1 vol. p. 235. farmer's Obfervations on PafTages in Scripture, vol. ii. ch. ii, QbiVrv. IIJ, confelTed, %66 OF THE BOOK OF PSALMi. confeiled, that upon this fubject the opinions are f<3 various and conjectural, that nothing Satisfactory can be offered, any more than upon the word Selah [z], "which fo often occurs. Many fanciful divifions of this book have been made. The Jews, at fome uncertain period, divided it into five feetions, probably in imitation of the divi- fion of the Pentateuch [a]. The four firft books of this divifion terminate with the word Amen; the fifth with Hallelujah. Our prefent order of the Pfalms is, perhaps, that in which they were lung in the tem- ple [b], and this may account for the occafional repetitions. Moses may be confidered as the firft compofer of facred hymns [c] ; all nations ieem afterwards to have adopted this mode of exprefling their religious fentiments, and to have employed hymns in cele- brating the praifes of their refpective deities [d], on [z] Selah is Mandated in the Septuagint hx-^x\px, a paufe in finging, or a change in tune. Vid. Hieron. Epift. ad Marcel. & Calmet Differt. fur Selah. [a] Madrafh Sillim. fol. 2, vol. i. Hieron. Prasf. in Pfalm. juxt. Heb. Verit. Hilar. Prol. in Pfalm. Huet afligns this divi. fion to the time of the Maccabees. Vid. Prop. IV. in Pfalm Gregor. Nyff. in Pfalm, Lib. I. c. v. Lib. II. c.xi. 2 Mace. ii. 13, 14. [b] Euthym. Prol. in Pfalm. Comp. Pfalms xiv. and liii. [c] Exod. xv. Deut. xxxii. [d] Eufeb. Hift. Eccl. Lib. II. c. xvii. Pharmut. de Nat. Deor. Targ. in Cent. i. 1. Clem. Alex. Strom. Lib. VI. Por- phyry de Abftin. Lib. IV. $ S. Alex, ab Alex. Genial. Dier. Lib. IV. c xvii. an OF THE BOOK OF PSALMS. Stf? an idea derived, perhaps, from revealed truth, that they were acceptable to the divine nature. The competition of iacred hymns was carried to great excellence by fucceeding prophets ; but was improved to its higheft perfection under David; whOj if he did not firft introduce, certainly eftabliih- ed the cuftom of tinging them in public fervice [e], with alternate interchange of verie, as in our cathe- dral fervice [>]. David was, indeed, a great patron of facred mufick [g] ; he introduced many new in- struments and improvements in this fpiritual part of the Jewifh worfliip, which was fuperinduced over that of facriiice [h]. The practice of Pfalmody niuft have received fome interruption from the iuf- peniion of the temple fervice, during the captivity [i]. It was however reftored, with lefs fplendour, by Ezra [k] ; and continued till it received the fanc- tion of Chrift and his apofties, who themfelves recom- mended the cuftom by their precept and example [l]. The [e] i Chron, vl. 31. xvi. 6, 7. Ecclus xlvii-. 9. [r j Ezra iii. 1 1. [g] 1 Chron. xvi. 42. xxiii. 5. xxv. t. 2 Chron. vii. 6, xxix. 26. and Jofeph Antiq. Lib. VII. [h] Auguft. de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVII. c. xiv. Codurc, Caten. in Pfalm. Praep. p. io« [1] Pfalm exxxvii. [k] Ezra iii. 11. Nehem. xit. 24, 31, 38, 40. [l] Matt. xxvi. 30. 1 Cor. xiv. 15. Ephef. v. 19. Col, iii. 16. Rev. xiv. z, 3. Vid. Calmet's Preface, Bofluet, Ham- mond, Allix, &c. All vocal and inftrumental performers were excluded from the Jewifh fynagogues after the deftruction «f Jerufalem, The little finging now ufed is of modern intro. du&ion. 26S B* THE BOOK OF PSALMS. The hymn which our Saviour funs with his dilci- pies at the conclufion of the laft flipper, is genei ally fuppofed to have confifted of the Pfalms that are con- tained between the one hundred and thirteenth and the one hundred and eighteenth inclufive [m]. This was called by the Jews the great Hallel, or Hymn, and was ufually fung by them at the celebration of the Paffover. Chrift alio exclaimed, in his folemn invocation on God from the crol's, in the complaints of the twenty-fecond Pfalm [x], and breathed out his laft fentiments of expiring piety in the words of David [o]. " No tongue of man or angel," fays Dr. Hammond, " can convey an higher idea of any "book, ancf of their felicity who ufe it aright." The thriftian church has therefore, by divine appoint- ment, adopted the PfaJms as a part of its fervice, and chofen from its firft inftitution to celebrate the praifes Of God in the language of fcripture [p] ; and thefe facred ducYion. The Jews, indeed, confider it as improper to indulge in fuch exprefiions of joy before the advent of their expedited Mef- fiah. The German Jews, however, entertain different notions, and have a mufical eftablifhment. They have, likewife, fome melodies, fuppofed to be very ancient ; but it is thought that the ancient diatonic notes are preferved more in the Pfalmody of our church, than in the Jewilh fynagogues. [m] Buxtorf. Lex. Talmud, bbn. Col. vi. 13. Lightfoot, vol. ii. 354, 444.. • [n] Comp. Matt, xxvii. 46. with Pfa. xxii. 1. [o] Comp. Luke xxiii. 46. with Pfa. xxxi. 5. [p] 1 Cor. xiv. 15. Ephef. v. 19. Colof. iii. 16. James v. 13. Conflit. Apoft. Lib. II. c. hii. Eufeb. Hift. Ecclef. 'Lib. Ill* c. xxxiii, Theod, Hill. Ecclef. Lib. II. c. xxi\. Auguft* OP THE BOOK OF PSALMS. f££ facred hymns are, indeed, admirably calculated foi* every purpoie of devotion. The expreffions and deicriptions of the Pfalma may ieem to lbme perions to have been appropriate and peculiar to the Jewiih circumftances ; and Da- vid, indeed, employs figures and allufions appli- cable to the old dil'penlation. But as in recording temporary deliverances and blefiings vouchlafed to. the Jews, we commemorate fpiritual advantages thereby fignified, we uie the Pfalms with the greateit propriety in our church. We need, as an elegant. Auguft. Conf. Lib. IX. c. vi. § 2. Lib. X. c. xxxiii. § 2. Plin. Epift. Lib. X. Epift. xcvii. Tertul. Apol. c. ii. p. 3. c. xxxix. p. 36. Fabric. Bib. Grasc. vol. v. c. i. The prac» ticc of pfalm-finging, as ufed in our choir, is derived, probably, from the ancient alternate chanting of the Jews (Ezra iii. 11. Nehem. xii. 24.) authorized by the apoftles, and adopted into the earlieft chriftian churches. It was certainly instituted at Antioch, between A. D. 347 and 356, by Flavianus and Dio- dorus ; who divided the choir into two parts, which fang alter- nately. Singing was foon afterwards introduced into the Weftern church by St. Ambrofe : and adopted with improve- ments by Gregory the Great, who eftablifhed the grave Gre» gorian chant which now prevails in the Romifh church. Choral mufick was brought into England by the companions of Auftin the Monk, A. D. 596, and firft eftablifhed at Canterbury. Ob. jeftions were often made in this country to church mufic, but it was approved by the compilers of King Edward's Liturgy, and foon after was compofed the formula that now regulates (with little variation) the choral fervice, which, though occa- sionally fufpended till the reftoration of Charles the Second, has fince been uniformly continued. Vid. Mart. Gerberr. Mufic. Sac. Bedford's Temple Mufic. Hawkins's Hiftory of ,Mufic, vol. i. and ii. Burney's Hiftory of Mufic, vol. i. p. 154, commen- £70 O* THE ftOOK. OF PSALMS commentator has obfcrved, but fubftitute the Md« liah for David, the G of pel for the Law, and the church of Chrift for the church of IiVael. We need but confider the ceremonies and facrifices of the Law as the emblems of fpiritual fervice, of which every part hath its correfpondent figure ; and we appropriate the Pfalms to our own ufe as the no- bleft treafure of infpired wifdom [q]. They finely illuftrate the connection which fubiilted between the two covenants, and ihed an evangelical light on the Mo-faic difpenfation by unveiling its inward radi- ance. The veneration for them has in all ages of the church been considerable. The fathers allure us, that in the earlier times, the whole book of Pfalms was generally learnt by heart [it], and that the minifters of every gradation were expecled to be able to repeat them from memory ; that Pfal- mody was every where a conftant attendant at meals and in bufinefs : that it enlivened the focial hours, and foftened the fatigues of life. The Pfalms have, indeed, as Lord Clarendon obferves, been ever thought to contain fomething extra- ordinary for the inftruclion and reformation of mankind [s]. Numberless [q] Bp. Home's Preface to Com. on the Pfalms. [r] u Pueri modulantur domi, viri foro circumferunt," fays an ancient writer. Vid. Bafilj 8c Ambrofe Prasf. in Pfalra. [s] Home's Preface. It is remarkable, that this Book of Pfalms is exactly the kind of work which Plato wifhed to fee for the inftru&ion of youth, but conceived it impoffible to ex- ecute. OF THE BOOK OF PSALMS. £f\ "Numberless are the teftimonies that might bo produced in praife of thefe admirable competitions, which contain, indeed, a complete epitome of the hiftory, doctrines, and mltructions of the Old Tefta- ment [t] ; delivered with every variety of ftile that may encourage attention, and framed with an ele- gance of conftruction f uperior far to the fined models in which Pagan antiquity hath inclofed its mythology.. Thefe invaluable fcriptures are daily repeated with- out wearinefs, though their beauties are often over- looked in familiar and habitual perufal. As hymns immediately addreffed to the Deity, they reduce rightcoufnefs to practice, and while we acquire the fentiments, we perform the offices of piety; as while we fupplicate for bleffings we celebrate the memo- rial of former mercies. Here, likewife, while in the exercife of devotion, faith is enlivened by the difplay of prophecy. Da- vid, in the fpirit of inspiration, uttered his oracles with the moft lively and exact defcription. He ex- preiied the whole Jcheme of man's redemption : the incarnation [u] ; the paffion ; the reiurrection [x] ; and afcenfion of the Son of God, rather as a wit- jieis, than as a prophet. As an eminent type of his ecute, as above the power of humnn abilities. Talo h ©-is, y <&uv t»voj, ay un" but this muft be the woik of a God, or of fome divine perfon. [t] Luther called the Pfalms a fmall Bible. The Pfalter wa< One of the firft books printed after the difcovery of the art. [u] Pfa. ii. 8. Afts xiii. }%. Talmud Sucah. cap. v. Aben. £zra. R. Kimchi. £x] Pfalm xyi. 9 — ir defcendantv 572 OF THE BOOK OF PSAtitfc defcendant, he is often led in the retrospect of fk& circumStances of his own Life, to Speak of thofe o£ Chrift : while he is describing his own enemies and Sufferings, the fpirit enlargeth his Sentiments, and fwelleth out his exprefiions to a proportion adapted to the character of the McSSiah. Hence even the perfonal Sufferings of Chrift arc defcribed with minute and accurate fidelity; and in the anticipated Scene of prophecy we behold him pictured on the crofs, with every attendant circumftanco of mockery and horror,- even to the " parting of his garments/' and to the " cafting lots for his veSture [y]«" David appriSed that the Meffiah mould Spring from his own immediate family [z], looked forward with peculiar intereft to his character and afflictions. In the foreknowledge of thofe Sufferings which Chrift Should experience from his " familiar Sriends," and from the numerous adverfaries of his church, David Speaks with the higheft indignation againft thofe ene-4 fnies who prefigured the foes of Chrift ; and impre- cates, or predicts, the Severeft vengeance againft them [a]. So Signal a representative of Chrift, in- deed, [y] Ffalm xxii. 16 — 18. compared with Matthew xxvii. |$; Burnet's lothand i ith fcrmons In Boyle's Iefltares. [7. J 2 Sam. vii. It. Pfalrn exxxii. 11, i 8. [a] The Severity with which David inveighs againft thd wieked, has been erroneously conficiercd as inconfiftent with the Spirit oS true religion. The paffagesj however, which are objected to on this fcore, arc either prophetic threats, or general denunciations of God's wrath againft fin, as it were} perfonified. It is the fpirit, rather than David, which utters ita OE THE BOOK OF PSALMS. £73 deed, was David confulered by the facred writers, that our Saviour is often exprefsly diftinguifhed in icripture by his name [b] ; and the Jews themfelves perceived that the MefTiah and his kingdom were ihadowed out as capital objects in the defcriptions of the Pfaimift. Senfible that what David uttered as often not applicable to his own perfon and hiftory [c], muft have had reference to ibme future charac- ter, thev tranfcribed whole pafTages from them into their prayers, for the ipeedy coming of the great ob- ject of their hopes ; though with that blindnefs that characterizes their conduct with the marks of glaring inconfiftency, they deny that thefe fpiritual allufions are applicable to the perfon of our Saviour ; and therefore ftill pray in the words of the Pfaimift, for the arrival of the Mefiiah [d]. Josephus afTerts [e], and moft of the ancient writers maintain, that the Pfalms were compofed in its imprecations againft the unrighteous enemies of the church. Forgivenefs and mercy towards the perfon of his own enemies were diltinguifhed parts of David's character, of which we fee very beautiful proofs in i Sam. xxiv. 4, 10. xxvi. 7 — 13. 2 Sam. i. 17 — 27. xix. 16 — 23. He curfed only thofe whom God in- ftruiftcd him to curfe ; and the church, in its public fervice, joins in thefe curfes, as a religious fociety, and confidently with the fpirit of charity. [a] Ifa. liii. 3. Jerem. xxx. 9. Ezek. xxxiv. 23. Hof. iii. £. [c] Pfa. xvi. 10. xxii. 16—18. lxxii. and Juilin Martyr, Dial. Ift. [n] Chandler's Defence, ch. iii. feft. 2. Comp. Pfa. xxxii. with 13th, 1 6th, 1 8th, and other prayers. Hofan Rabba. [r] Jofeph. Antiq, Lib. VII. c. x. Hieron. Epift. ad Paulin. T metre. $7/4 OF THE BOOK. OF PSAL5IS. metre. They have undoubtedly a peculiar confor- mation of feiucnces, and a meafured diftribution of parts. Many of them are elegiac, and molt of Da- vid s are of the Lyric kind. There is no fufficient reafon, however, to believe, as fome writers have imagined, that they were written in rhyme, or in any of the Grecian meafures. Some of them are acroitic ; and though the regulations of the Hebrew meafure are now loft, there can be no doubt, from their harmonious modulation, that they were written with fome kind of metrical order, , and they mult have been conipofed in accommodation to the rnea- iure, to which they were let [r]. The Maforetic writers have marked them in a manner different from the other facred writings [g]. The Hebrew copies and the Septuagmt verhon of this book contain the fame number of Pfalms ; only the Septuagint tranllators have, for fome reafon which does not appear, thrown the ninth and tenth into one [h] ; as alio the one hundred and fourteenth, and [f] It is probable, that the Pfalms were originally divided into verfes terminating with the conclulion of the fenfe, though many of the Jews maintain, that the Maforites introduced the diftinftion. Vid. Buxtorf. Com. M afore t. p. 38. [g] Some perfons fuppofe, that the points were at firft rau- fical characters, and, it is faid, that they (till ferve, not only to mark the accentuation in reading, but alfo to regulate the melody in finging the prophecies ; and that as to high and low, as well as to long and lhort notes. Vid. Burney's Hilt, of Mufic, vol. i. [hJ So that the Romanics, v* ho ufe St. Jerom's tranflation, •jeckon one behind us from the xtlfc, to' the cxivth. and two froitt 9 OF THE BOOK OF PSALMS. 2?J and the one hundred and fifteenth ; and have divided the one hundred and fifteenth, and the one hundred and forty-feventh, each into two. In the Syriac [i], and Arabic veriions, indeed, and alfo in nioft copies of the Septuagint, as well as in an Anglo-Saxon verlion, there is annexed to the hundred and fifty canonical Pfahns, an additional hymn, which is en- titled, " a Pialm of thankfgiving of David, when he had vanquished Goliah." This though admitted by fome [k] as authentic, was probably (as it is not in the Hebrew) a fpurious work or fome Hellenifti- cvd Jew; Mho might have compiled it out of the writings of David, Iiuiah, and Ezckiei. Tl e verfion of the Pfahns in our Bible, which was made by the tranilators employed under James the Firft, is pofte- rior to that printed in our Prayer-books, which was executed in 1539 [l]. This laft, as very excellent, and familiarized by cuftom, was retained in the Liturgy, though as tranilated chiefly from the Sep- tuagint, with fome variation in conformity to the from thence to the cxvith. and again one from thence to the cxlviith. from whence they continue to agree with us. [i] It is faid in the Syriac, that fome add twelve Pfalms, which however are there rejected as without authority. [k] Athan. in Synop. [l] Introduction, p. 35. This was Tyndal's and Coverdale's tranilation, corrected by Tonftal and Heath. In this the four- teenth Pfalm contains eleven verfes ; whereas in the Hebrew, and in our Bible, it contains but feven (or rather eight). The three verfes are, however, genuine, though loft from the Hebrew^ for they are in the Septuagint, and are cited by St. Paul. Vid. Rom. iii. 13—18, T 2 Hebrew, £7fc> OF THE BOOK OF PSALMS. Hebrew, corrupted by the Maforetic points, it does, not fo exactly corref'pond with the original as does that in our Bibles [m]. David was the ion of Jefle, of the tribe of Judah, a delcendant of that family to which God's covenant was made. He was born about A. M. 2920, and lived feventy years, during forty of which he was in poffeffion of the throne of Ifrael [n], being railed by God from an humble to a confpicuous ftation, that the genealogy of the Meffiah might be difplaved, and afeertained with more clearnefs and diftinction [o].. He was eminently diftinguimed for every great and amiable quality. The particulars of his intereiting life are difplayed with peculiar minutenefs in the la- cred hiitory ; and many of his Plalms are fo cha- rafteriftic of the circumftances under which they were compofed, that there cannot be a more en- [m] Where the translators of the veriion publifhed in our prayer-books have varied from the Septuagint, and followed the Hebrew Maforetic copies, the Hebrew text, if read without the points, would be as confident with the Septuagint, and other ancient verfions, as it is with the tranfiation in our Bible. In the inftances, then, where the authors of the verfion in the Liturgy have varied, in compliance with the Maforetic authority, they have generally erred. Vid. Dr. Brett, and Johnfon, at end of Holy David. [n] He reigned over Judah feven years and fix months, and in Jerufalern over ail" Ifrael and Judah thirty-three years, being anointed long before he came into poiTeffion of the rhrone. Vid. 2 Sam. xxiii. 2. and Chandler. [oj The word David implies '* beloved." Vid. i Sam, xiii. 14. and xvi; 18, Bp. Porteus's fermon on David's cha- rafter. gaging OF THE BOOK OF PSALMS. 277 gaging tafk, than that of tracing their connection with the events of h:»i hittory [p] ; and of diicovering the occaiions on which they were feverally produced, in the feeling and defcriptive fentiments -which they contain. If in the fuccefnve fcenes of liis life, we behold him afrive in (he exercife of thole virtues which his piety produced, we here contemplate him in a no lefs attractive point of view. In this book we find him afincere fervant of God, divefted of ail the pride of royalty; pouring out the emotions of his foul, and unfolding his pious fentiment in every viciliitude of condition. At one time we have the prayers of diftrefs ; at another, the praiies and ex- ultation of triumph. Hence are the Pfalms ad- mirably adapted to all circumftances of life, and ferve alike for the indulgence of joy, or the foothing of forrow ; they chafe away defpondence and afflic- tion, and furnifh gladnefs with the ftrains of holy and religious rapture. [p] Delar\y*s Lift of David* T 3 et [ 278 ] =*• OF THE BOOK of PROVERBS. THE Proverbs, as we are informed at the be- ginning, and in other parts of the book [a], were written by Solomon, the fon of David ; a man, as the facred writings allure us, peculiarly en- dued with divine wifdom [b]. Whatever ideas of his fuperior underltanding we may be led to form by the particulars recorded of his judgment and attain- ments, we mall find them amply juftified, on peril- ling the works which remain in teftimony of his abilities. This enlightened monarch, being defirous of employing the wifdom which he had received to the advantage of mankind, produced feveral works for their inftruction. Of thefe, however, three only were admitted into the canon of the facred writ by Ezra ; the others being either not designed for re- ligious inftrucrion, or fo mutilated by time and acci- dent, as to have been judged imperfect. The book of Proverbs, that of Ecclefiaftes, and that of the [a] Vid. chap. i. I. xxv. i. Tb] Vid. j Kings iii. 12. iv. 29 — 31. xi. 9. 2Chron. i. 12. Sojig OF THE BOOK OF FJtOVFKES. C/9 Son^ of Solomon, are all that remain of him, who is related to have Spoken " three thouiand proverbs [a] ;" whole " longs were a thouiand and five ;" and who " 1'pake of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon, even to the hyiTop that fpringeth out of the wall ;v who " fpake alio of beafh, and of fowls, and of creeping things, and of fillies." If, however, many valuable writings of Solomon have perifhed, we have reafon to be grateful for what ftill re- mains. Of his proverbs and longs the molt excellent have been providentially prefei ved ; and as we poflefs his doctrinal and moral works, we have no right to murmur at the lofs of his phyfical and philosophical production?. This book of Proverbs contains the maxims of long experience, framed by one who was well cal- culated, by his rare qualities and endowments, to draw juit lellbns from a comprehenfive Survey of hu- man life. Solomon judicioufly funis up his precepts in brief energetic Sentences, which are well contrived for popular instruction [•«]. The wiidom, indeed, of all [c J Vid. i Kings iv. 32. Jofephus (Antlq. Lib. VIII. c. ii.) magnifies the account of fcripture to 3000 books of Proverbs ; and St. Jc-rom as erroneoufiy conceives, that thefe 3000 Pro- verbs are contained in the prefent book ; but we mull admit that many of this number have perifhed. Some have fuppofed, that the phyfical books of Solomon were extant in the days of Alexander, and were tranflated by means of an interpreter into rhe'w'orks of Ariftotle and Theophraft.es. Vid. Jochafin. Eufebius (as cited by Anaftafius) fays, that King Hczekiah fuppreffed them, becaufe abufed by the people. [d] The Proverbs of Solomon are called in the Hebrew Mclhalim, from bwv, Jylarfhal, dominatus eft. The word may T 4. be 280 OF THE BOOK OF PROVERBS. all ages, from the higheft antiquity, hath chofen to comprefs its leflbns into compendious leniences, which were peculiarly adapted to the Simplicity of earlier times ; which are readily conceived and eaiily retained ; and which circulate in fociety as ufefui principles, to be unfolded and applied as occalion may require. The inipired ion of David had the power of giving peculiar poignancy and weight to this ftyle of writing, and his works have been as it were the ftorehoufe from which ppttcrity hath drawn its belt maxims [e]. His Proverbs are fo juitly founded on principles of human nature, and i'o adapted to the permanent interefts of man, that they agree with the manners of every age ; and may be affumed as rules for the direction of our conduct in every condition and rank of life, however varied in its complexion, or diverfified by circumftances ; they embrace not only the concerns of private morality, but the great obje6ts of political importance [Vj. be tranflated y.V^xi 36%xi, fententiae maxime rata?, authoritative maxims, elevated precepts. Vid. Job xxvii. I. Maius Vet, Teft. p. 83 S. Bacon de Augm. Scient. They are to be con- fidered as general maxims, and not as univerfally and invari, ably applicable, or as always true in a ftrict fenfe without any exceptions. [e] Many of the facred writers who followed Solomon bor- rowed his thoughts and expreiftons ; and many heathen writers are indebted to him for their brighteft fentiments. Vid. Huet. Prop. 4. where imitations are produced from Theognis, Sopho- cles, Euripides, Anaxiiaus, Pla:o, Horace, and Menander. ■ [f] St. Bafil fays of this book, that it is oT^us h$&ax.Q#*ct j3»s, an univerfal inftruction for the government of life. Subfcqucnt OF THE B0O£ OF PROVERBS. 23l Subfequeot moraliits have, in their difcourfes on ecumenical prudence, done little more than dilate on the precepts, and comment on the wildom of Solo- mon. Grotius, extenfive as were his own powers, was unable to conceive that the Book of Proverbs could be the work of one man, and iuppoies it to have been a collection of the fmeft proverbs of the age, made in |he lame manner as thole published by feme of the emperors at Constantinople, and per- fected from various collections under Hezekiah [g]. But this opinion, founded on fome rabbinical ac- counts, can deferve but little regard. The work might, perhaps, compofe part of the 5000 proverbs which Solomon is defcribed to have uttered, being probably digested as far as the twenty-fifth chapter by that monarch himfelf, and afterwards received into the canon with fome additions. The book may be confidered under five divifions- The firft part, which is a kind of preface, extends to the tenth chapter. This contains general cautions and exhortations from a teacher to his pupil, de- livered in very various and elegant language : duly connected in its parts; illustrated with beautiful de- scriptions ; decorated with all the ornaments of poeti- cal compofition, and well contrived as an engaging introduction to awaken and intereit the attention. The feeond part extends from the beginning of the tenth chapter to the Seventeenth verfe of the twenty-fecond, and contains what may ftrietly and properly be called Proverbs, given in unconnected [gJ Grotius Prxf. in Pro v. general *S2 OF TITE BOOK OF TR'nv i.T' f.S. general fentences [n] v. ith much 'neatnefs and fim- plicity [i]; adapted to the injunction of youth, -'and probably more immediately defined by Solomon for the improvement of his ion [k]. Thefe are trulv, to nfe his own companion, " apples of gold in picture? of iilver." In the third part, which contains what is included Ixiween the fixteenth verfe' of the twenty- fecond chapter and the twenty-fifth chapter, the tutor is fuppofed, for a more lively effect, to addrefs his pupil as prefent ; he drops the fententious Ityle of proverbs, and communicates exhortations in a more continued and connected ftrain. The proverbs which are included between the twenty- fifth and thirtieth chapters, and which confti- tute the fourth part, are fuppofed to have been fe- lecfed from a much greater number by the men of Hezekiah ; that is, by the prophets whom he em- ploved to reftore the fervice and the writings of the church, as Eliakim, and Joah, and Shebnah ; and probably Hofea, Micah, and even Ilaiah [lJ, who [h] I he general fcope of the difconrfe, however, mull be re- membered, even in the explication of detached fentiments. [i] The Proverbs generally confilt of two fentences, joined in <* kind of annthefls ; the fecond being fometimes a reduplication, fometimes an explanation, and fometimes an oppofition in the fenfe to the hrft. This ltyle of compofition produces great beauties in many other parts of fcripture, where it is employed for poetical arrangement. Vid. Lowth's Prxlecl. xix. [k] Rehoboam ; though the phrafe " my fon" is only a term of general application. Vid. Hebrew, chap. xii. 3, Michael. Prcef. in Lib. [1.] Vid. R. Mofes Kimchi, all OF THE BOOK OF PROVERBS. £$£ all flourithed in the reign of that monarch, and doubtlefs co-operated with his endeavours to re- eftablilh true religion among the Jews. Thele pro- verbs, indeed, appear to have been felected by lbme collectors after the time of Solomon, as they repeat ibme which he Had previoufly introduced in the former part of the book [:.i]. The fifth part contains the prudent admonitions which Agur, the ton of Jakeh, delivered to his pu- pils, Ithiel and Ucal ; thefc are included in the thirtieth chapter. It contains alio the precepts which the mother of Lemuel delivered to her fon, as defcribed in the thirty-firlt chapter. CoxcEiiXixc theie perfons whole works are an- nexed to thofe of Solomon, commentators have en- tertained various opinions. The original words which defcribe Agur as the author of the thirtieth chapter, might be differently tranflated [x] ; but ad- mitting the preient conitruction as molt natural and jult, we mav obferve, that the generality of the fa- thers, and ancient commentators, have iuppoled that under the name of Agur, Solomon describes himfelf, though no fatisfactory reaibn can be afiigned for his afTuming this name [o]. Others, upon very infuf- [m] Comp. chap. xxv. 24. with xxi. 9. xxvi. 13. with xxii. 13. xxvi. ij-. with xxix. 24. xxvi. 22. with xviii. 8, Sec. [x] They might be tranflated the words of the Collector. In the Septuagintj where this chapter is placed immediately after the xxivth, we read inftead of the firft verfe, t« 01 Keyci o a.-.r,s tois vnrsvaat Gew, xsa sk»mjm«h, Thus fpeaketh the man t« thofe who believe, and I ceafe. [o] Vid. Lowth's xviiith Prcelecl. and Calmet, ficient 284- OF THE BOOK ©F PROVERBS. ficient grounds, conjecture that Agur and Lemuel were interlocutors with Solomon ; the book has no appearance of dialogue, nor is there any interchange of peribn : it is more probable, that though the book was defigned principally to contain the fayings of Solomon, others might be added by the men of He- zekiah : and Agur might have been an infpired wri- ter [p], whofe moral and proverbial ientences (for fuch is the import of the word Mafia, rendered Pro- phecy [q]), were joined with thole of the wife man, becaufe of the conformity of their matter. So like- wile the dignity of the book is not affected, if we fuppofe the lait chapter to have been written by a different hand;- and admit the mother of Lemuel to have been a Jevviih woman, married to fome neigh- bouring prince ; or Abiah, the daughter of the high- prieft Zechariah, and mother of king Hezekiah ; iince, in any cafe, .it muft be coniidered as the pro- duction of an infpired writer, or it would not have been received into the canon of fcripture. But it was perhaps meant that by Lemuel we mould under- ltand Solomon [r] ; for the word which fignifies ■ [j'j The fecond and third verfes, though they tend as well as the eighth to prove that the chapter was not written by Solomon, yet by no means invalidate the author's claim to infpiration, who here describes hirnfelf as devoid of underftanding before he re. ceived the influx, of divine wifdom. In the Septuagint the third verfe expreiTes a fenfe directly contrary, ©toj SthSxx,'- Fl C°Q'tei' /4i ywmi xy'iait iyvjxz, God hath taught me wifdom^ and I have learnt the knowledge of the faints. [oj KTS. Prov. xxx. j. xxxi. 1. [i] Vid; R, Nathan. Frov. iv. 3, 4, one OF THE BOOK OF PROVERBS. 285 one belonging to God, might have been given unto him as descriptive of his character, lince to Solomon God had exprefsly declared that he would be a father [s]. Dr. Delan v, who was a ftrenuous advocate for this opinion, declares that he took great pains to examine the objections that have been alledged againftit, and allures us that they are fuch as readers of the belt understanding would be little obliged to him for retailing, or refuting. One of the chief objections, indeed, rather confirms what it was in- tended to deftroy. The mother of Lemuel thrice calls her ion, Bar, a word no where elle ui'ed throughout the Old Teftament, except in the twelfth vcrie of the fecond Pfalm [t] ; but this rather proves that Lemuel mult have been dellgned to im- ply Solomon, becaufe his father is the only per ion who uies the word [u]. Dr. Delany then conceives that the mother of Lemuel was Bathfheba [x], ani that the commendation annexed was designed for her, and he vindicates her character as deferving the [s"| 2 Sam, vii. 14. [t] 13. Bar in the Chaldee iignifies a fon. David might have ufed it in that fenfe as well as Bathfheba in this book ; for we know not how early foreign expreffions (if it be one) might have been adopted into the Hebrew language. [u] Vid. Delany 's Life of David, Book IV. chap. xxi. and Calmet. [x] Vid. alfo Bedford, p. 607, Calmet and Locke, who are of the fame opinion. Prov. iv. 3. Bathfheba is by fome fup- pofed to have been endued with the fpirit of prophecy. Vide chap. xxxi. I. 2 eulogium. £86 OF THE BOOK OF PROVERBS. eulogium. v Should fome circumftances in the de- scription, however, be judged inapplicable to her, there is no reaibn why we mould not conceive a general character to have been intended. It appears then upon a collective coniideration, that the greateit part of the book was compofed, and perliaps digeited by Solomon himfelf ; that fome additions were made, principally from the works of Solomon, by the men of Hezekiah ; and that the whole was arranged into its prefent form, and admitted into the canon by Ezra. It is often cited by the evangelical writers [v], and the work, as it now frauds, contains an inva- luable compendium of inftructions. It is iuppofed to have been the production of Solomon when ar- rived at maturity of life : when his mind had mul- tiplied its ftores, and been enlarged by long ol>- fervation and experience. It was probably written before the book of Kcclefiaftes, for it feems to be therein mentioned [z]. Solomon was born about A. M. '2971. He iuc- ceeded David about eighteen years after, and enjoyed a profperous reign of near forty years [a]. Under his government the kingdom was remarkable for its well regulated cecouomv, and its exteniive commerce. It was lb enlarged by his conquefts and prudent ma- [y] Vid. Matt. xv. 4. Luke xlv. 10. Rom. xii. \6, 17, 20. 1 Thefl". v. 1 j. 1 Pet. iv. 8. v. 5. James iv. 6, Sec. paffim. [&] Ecclef. xii. 9. [a] The name of Solomon is analogous to Pacific, and is happily defcriptive of the peaceful profperity which he enjoyed. The Rabbins confider it as appellative. nagement, O-F- THE. BOOK OF PKOVERUS, 57 nagement, that " he reigned over" or made tribu- tary " all the kings from the river (Euphrates) even to the land of the Philiftines and the borders of Egypt [$]." Illultrious .men were attracted from all parts by his fame for wifdom and magnificence [t ]. The fon of Sirach laid of him, that he was " a flood filled with underitanding ; that his foul covered the whole earth ; and that he filled it with dark parables [d]." His character, like that of every human being, was occalionally marked with the ftains of fin, particularly towards the clofe of life, when his enfeebled mind was feduced to cor- rupt affections and idolatry. The high reputation which he enjoyed, occaiioned many fpurious writings to pals under the (auction of his name, as the Pfalter, as it is called, of Solomon, which conlifts of eigh- teen Greek Pfalms, and which was probably the? work of foine Helleniftical Jew [e], who might have compiled it from the writings of David, Ifaiah, and Ezekiel [fJ. Another book likewife, entitled, The Cure [bj 2 Chron. ix. 26. [e] 1 Kings x. 20. [d] Ecclus xlvii. 14, ij. The ancients prided themfelves much on the knowledge of parables and proverbs. Vid. Prov. i. 6. Wifd. viii. 8. Ecclus. i. 25". vi. 35. xxix. 1, 2, 3. [e] The Helleniftical Jews were Jews difperfed in foreign countries, who fpoke the Greek language. [f] This Pfalter, which, like moft of the Helleniftical works, h full of Hebraifms, was copied from an ancient Greek manu- fcript in the Augfburg library by Andrea Scotto, and publilhed with a Latin verfiou by John Lewi* de la Cerda. Vid. Calmet. Pref. OF THE BOOK. OF PROVERBS. Cure of Difeafes, mentioned by Kimchi ; The Con- tradictions of Solomon, condemned by Pope Gela- iius; and his Teftament, cited by M. Gaumin; with five other books, mentioned by Alfred the Great in his Mirror of Aftrology ; and four named by Trithemenus, which favour of magical invention, are probably all fpurious ; as well as the letters which he is faid to have written to Hiram, and Hiram's an- fwers, though Jofephus confiders thefe laft as au- thentic [g]. The magical writings that were attri- buted to Solomon, were lb affigned in confequence of an idea which prevailed in the Kaft, that Solomon was converfant with magic ; an idea derived, per- haps, from the fame ofthofe experiments which his phyfical knowledge might have enabled him to dis- play; but which, however obtained, certainly pre- vailed; for we learn from Jofephus [n], that many perfons, when charged with the practice of magic," endeavoured to juftify themfelves, by accufing Solo- mon of ufing charms againft difeafes, and of form- ing conjurations to drive away demons. Jofephus Pref. Gen. fur les Pfeaumes. Thefe Pfalms appear from the index at the end of the New Teftament to have been formerly in the Alexandrian roanufcript, though they have been loft or torn from thence. [g] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. VIII. cap. ii. Jofephus grounds the authenticity of thefe letters on Jewilh and Tyrian records ; but befides other fufpicious cjreumftances, Hiram is reprefented as fpeaking of Tyre as an ifland, whereas old Tyre, which was con- temporary with his period, was fituated on the continent. [?] Vid. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. VIIL cap. ii, relates OF THE BOOK OF PROVERBS. 289 relates alfo, that one named Eleazer drove away ieveral demons in the pretence of Vefpaiian by means of a ring, in which was enclofed a root, marked, as was (aid, by Solomon; and by pronouncing the name of that monarch: and amidft the fuperftitious notions that long afterwards continued to delude the-eaftern nations, we find fuch imaginary influence over evil fpirits afcribed to the name of 'Solomon. The Septuagint and other veriions of this book differ occalionally from the Hebrew original, and contain indeed more proverbs, fome of which are to be found alfo in the Book of Ecclefiafticus. The order likewife of the poetical books is different in the Septuagint [i], and in fome manufcripts, where the metrical books run thus, Pfalms, Job, and Pro- verbs. [i] Codex Alexand, Vid. Grabe in Prolog, cap. i. lelito apud Eufeb, Ecclef. Hift. Lib. IV. cap. 26, &c. OF [ £90 ] OF THE fcOOK of ECCLESIASTES; OR, THE PREACHER. THIS Book was unqucftionably the production of Solomon, who for the great excellency of his inftructions was emphatically itiled " the Preach- er." It is faid by the Jews to have been written by him, upon his awakening to repentance [a], after he had been feduced in the decline of life to idolatry and tin; and if this be true, it affords valuable proofs of the fmcerity with which he regretted his departure from righteoufnefs. Some, however, have afcribed the work to Ifaiah [bJ. The Talmudifts pretend that Hezekiah was the author of it [c] ; and Grotius, [a] Seder Olam, Rabba, c. xv. p. 41. Hicron. in Ecclcf. i. sz. Vid. alfo chap. ii. 10. vii. 26. [b] R. Mofes Kimchi. R. Gedalias in Schalfch Hakkab. fol. 66. [c] Bava Bathra, c. i. f. i£. The Talmudifts fuppofe Heze- kiah to have produced, or compiled, the three books of Solomon, as likewife the book of Ifaiah. Vid, Pcters's Preface to Diflert. te Job, Svo. >'dit. upon OF THE BOOK OF ECCLESIASTES. C9I upon fome yague conjectures, conceives that it was compofed by order of Zerubbabel [d]. But we {hall be convinced that it Ihould be affigned to So- lomon, if we confider that the author itiles himielf " the fon of David, the King in Jerufalem;" and that he defcribes his wiidom, his riches, his writings, and his works, in a manner applicable only to Solomon [e] ; as alio that the book is attributed to him both by Jewiih and Chriftian tradition. The foreign ex- preffions, if they really be fuch, which induced Gra- tius to confider the book as a production fublequent to the Babylonifh captivity, might have been ac- quired by Solomon in his intercourfe and connection with foreign women [f]. But the ftile of the work muft have often occafioned the introduction of un- ufual words [g]. The later Jews are faid to have been defirous of excluding it from the canon [h], from fome contradiction and improprieties which they fancied to exift by not confidering the fcope and de- [d] Grot, in Ecclef. [b] Chap. i. 1, 12, 16. y. 4-— 10. vii. 2$ — 28. via. 16. xii. 9. [f] 1 Kings xi. 12. [g] Maimon. More Nevoch. Part II. c. Ixvii. Of the words produced as foreign by Grorius, all are now allowed to be ge- nuine Hebrew, except two, viii. 1. ~)&>s. x. 8. yob. which were, perhaps, Arabic or Chaldaic expreflions in ufe in the time of Solomon. Vid. Calovius. [h] Maimon. More Nevoch, p. 2. c. xxviii. Madralh. Cohel. f. 14. Aben-Ezra, Ecclef. vii. 4. Hieron. in Ecclef. xii. 12. Gemar in Pirlce Abboth, f. 1. col. 1. Some abfurdly imagined, that Solomon maintained the eternity of the woxld, in eh. i. 4. V 2 figa 292 OF THE BOOK OF ECC LEST ASTES, fign of the author. But when they obfcrved the excellent conclufion, and its confiftency with the law, they allowed its pretentions. There can, indeed, be no doubt of its title to an admiilion : Solomon was eminently diftinguiilied by the illumination of the divine {pint, and had even twice witneifed the divine presence [i]. The tendency of the book is excellent, when rightly understood, and Solomon {peaks in it with great elearnefs of the revealed truths of a future life, and univerfal judgment: The book is in the Hebrew denominated " Cohe- leth,'" a word which fignifies one who fpeaks in pub- lic [k]; and which, indeed, is properly tranllated by the Greek word Eccleiiailes [l], or, the Preacher. Solomon, as Mr. DciVoeux has remarked, feems here to fpeak in a character limilar to that of the fophifts among the Greeks; not, indeed, of the fophifts when degenerated into fubtle and quibbling wranglers, but of the fophifts who, in the dignity of their primitive character, blended philofophy and rhetoric [m]; and made plcafurc fubfervient to inftruelion, by convey- ing wifdom with eloquence. Though Solomon is not hereby to be conlidered as having harangued. [i] I Kings iii. ;. ix. 2. xi. g. [k] Some fay, that the word Coheleth means a collector. In the Ethiopick tongue it implies a circle, or company of men. [l] EwAijca«r»i. The Hebrew word, has, however, a femi- . .nine termination in refpeft to wifdom, perfonifud, as it we're, io. Solomon. • Tm] PhiloHrat. ap. Murct, in Dcfin. II. Cicero Orat. c. xix. like OF THE HOOK QE I.CCLT.f I.\ STES. i'93 like the common orators of his time, yet, as there can be no doubt that he often pubiickly initrufted his own people, and even Itrangers, who were drawn by his reputation for wifdom to his court [x], it is not improbable that this difeourfe was tirft delivered in publick; and, indeed, fome paflages have been pro- duced from the book in fupport of this opinion [o]. The main fcope and tendency of the book have been varioully reprefented. Air. Defvoeux, after an accurate difcuffion of the different opinions, has pro- nounced it to be a philofophical difeourfe [p], writ- ten in a rhetorical ftile, and occaiionally interfperfed with verfes [q]. It may be coniidered as a kind of enquiry into the chief good ; an enquiry conducted on found principles, and terminating in a conclusion which all, on mature reflection, will approve. The great object of Solomon appears to have been from a comprehenfive confederation of the circumftances of human life, to demonftrate the vanity of all fecular purfuits. lie endeavours to illuftrate by a juft efti- mate, the infufficiency of earthly enjoyment; not with defign to excite in us a difguft at life [r], but to influence us to prepare for that itate where there [n] Mercer. Prsf. in Ecclef. [o] Chap. xii. 9, 12. Gregor. Mag. Lib. IV. Dial. c. iv, [p] Defvoeux Philofophical and Critic. EiTays on Ecclef. [o] The jews do not admit that Ecclefiaftes mould be confi- dered as a poetical work. [r] The Manichzeans, not cenftdering that human purfuits are only fo far vain as they terminate in a pi-dent objtCt, maintained the exiftence of an evil principle. U 3 is 294 OF THE BOOK OF ECCLESIASTES. s no vanity [s]. With this view, the Preacher af- firms, that man's labour, as far as it has refpect only to preient objects, is vain and unprofitable [t] J that however profperous and flattering circumftances may appear, yet as he could from experience aiTert, neither knowledge; norpleafure; nor magnificence; nor greatnefs ; nor uncontrolled indulgence, can fatisfy the defires of man [u] ; that the folicitude with which fame men toil and heap up poiTeffions for defcendants often unworthy, is efpecial vexation; that it is better far to derive fuch enjoyment from the gifts of Providence, as they were defigned to furnifh, by being rendered iublervient to good actions [x] ; Solomon proceeds to obferve, that in this life, " iniquity ulurps the place of righteoufnefs ;" that man appears in fome refpects to have " no pre- eminence above the beaft" that perimes; and that [s] Auguft. de Civit. Dei, 1. 20. c. iii. Hieron. Prol. in Eccles. [t] Compare Ecclef. i. 2. with Perfius, Sat. I. line 1. [u] Gregor. NyiTen. Horn. I. in Ecclef. T. i. p. 375. Salen. Dial, in Ecclef. Bib. Patav. in Ecclef. torn. i. col. 147. Caftal. Prasf. in Ecclef. Collyer's Sacred Interp. vol. i. p. 339. Prior's Solomon. [x] Chap. iii. 12. Solomon recommends a moderate enjoy, ment of the good gifts of Providence, and thinks fuch enjoy- ment more rcafonable than an inordinate purfuit after riches, or than thofe labours from which no advantage mould refult to ourfelves. Vid. Ecclef. ii. 24. viii. 15. ix. 7 — 9. Acts xiv. 17. 1 Tim. iv. 1 — s. Drufius in Ecclef. i. 1. Geier. Prol. in Ecclef. Horace Carm. Lib. II. Ode II. 1. 1 — 4. And Wells's Help to the Underftanding of the Holy Scriptures. the OF THE BOOK OF ECCIESIASTE5. £05 the confideration of thei'e circumftances mav at fxrft light lead to wrong coneluiioos, concerning the value of life ; but that God fhould not be haftily arraigned, for that " he that is higher than the higheft, re- gardeth." That even here, thole who " pervert judgment," are not fatisfied by abundance, " but that the ileep of the labouring inan is fweet [y]." That though the hearts of men be encouraged in evil by the delay of God's fentence, and though the days of the (inner may be prolonged on earth, yet that, finally, it (hall be well only with them who fear God [z]. Solomon then fums up his exhortations to good deeds, and to a remembrance of the Creator in the days of youth, " or ever the filver cord of life be looted, or the golden bowl be broken [a];" when " the duft ihall return to the earth, and the fpirit unto God who gave it." And the infpired teacher bids us " hear the concluiion of the whole matter," which is, " to fear God, and to keep his [y] Chap. iii. — vi. [z] Chap. viii. n — 13. [a] Chap. xii. 5, 6. By the filver cord of which Solomon fpeaks in this figurative defcription of old age, fome under- itand the humours of the body, which are, as it were, the thread of life. But the moft judicious writers confider it as an elegant expreflion for the fpinal marrow, with the nerves arifing from it, and the filaments, fibres, and tendons that proceed from them. This white cord is loofened (or fhrunk up) when it is no longer full of fpirits. The golden bowl is fuppofed to mean the pia mater. This membrane, which covers the brain, is of a yellowilh colour. For farther explanation of this beautiful allegory, confult Commentators and Smith's U 4 command- 9,§6 OF THE BOOK OF EC C LESIASTES. commandments, for this is the whole of man ; fop God fhall bring every work into judgment, with every fecret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil [b]." In the courfc of his difcuffion of this fubjecl, Solomon deviates into fome remarks incidentally fuggeited, in order to preclude objections, and to prevent falfe conclufions. It is therefore neceilary always to keep in mind the purport arid defign of the difcourfe, which is carried on, not in a chain of re- [b] De Sacy Avertis. fur l'Ecclef. De Launey, fur l'Ecclef. xii. 15. Hardouin Paraph, fur l'Ecclef. Witfii. Prasf. Mifcel. Sac. c. xviii. § $6, 37. The whole force of Solomon's reafon- ing refts on the doctrine of a future judgment, as maintained in chap. xii. 15, 14. and before in chap. iii. 17. vii. 1, 12. xi. 9. He had admitted that as to this life, there was but " one event to the righteous and to the wicked," ch. ix. 1 — 3. The feven following verfes in the ninth chapter are fometimes fuppofed to be fpoken in the affumed character of an Epicurean. Compare chap. ix. 4 — 10. with Wifd. ii. i- — 11. But Solomon might, confiftently with the fcope of his own difcourfe, maintain that the only hope of man is during life, and that in this refpecT:, the moft wretched being, a living dog, is better than the grcatcft monarch, a deatl lion ; for the living having the profp^ft of death, may prepare for it, but the dead have no more opportu- nity of purchasing a reward ; that the gratification of their paf. fions is then perifhed, and that they have no more a portion on earth. Hence Solomon proceeds to exhort to a difcreet enjoy- ment, and to active exertion, for that wifdom would find no employment in the grave : that in this life there is no equal dif- tribution, and that the time of departure from it is uncertain. Solomon concludes the chapter with a lively illuftration of the final advantage, and deliverance to be produced by humble wif- dom, however over-looked and defpifed in the prdent life, Vid. chap. ix. 4 — 18. gufer OF THE BOOK. OF ECC LF.S I AS'iT.S. 2re me, trical, and marked them particularly as fuch. But other book:, equally metrical, as the Canticles, and the Lamen- tations, they noted with profaic accentuation ; and the Jews X 3 confide? 310 OF THE SONG OP SOLOMON There have been many different divifions of the book ; fome conceive that it naturally breaks out into feven parts ; and the learned Boffuet has ob- served, that it defcribes the feven days which the nuptial ceremony [b], (as, indeed, almoft all folem- pities among the Jews) lafted, during which time felect. virgins attended the bride, as the bridegroom was accompanied by his chofen friends [c]. Bossuet's diftribution of the work is as fol- lows [d]. The firft day, chap. i. ii. 6» fecond day, chap. ii. 7. 17. third day, chap. iii. v. 1. fourth day, chap. v. 2. vi. 9- fifth day, chap. vi. 10. vii. 11. fixth day, chap. vii. 12. -— — viii. 3. leventh day, chap. viii. 4. 14. Bossuet fuppofes the feventh day to be the fab- bath, becaufe the bridegroom is not represented as confider thefe books as profaic compofitions. Vid. Mantifla, pi IT. ad Lib. Cofri, p. 413. [b] Gern xxix. 27. Judg. xiv. 15, 17. Tobit viii. 19, 20. [c] Cant. i. 4. ii. 7. v. 1. Judg. xiv. it. Pfalm xlv. 14. Matt. ix. 15. xxv. 1. John iii. 29. The friends of the bride- groom may be confidered as the reprefentatives of angels, pro- phets, and apoftles ; and the friends of the bride are figurative, perhaps, of the followers of the church. They are called the daughters of Jerufalem. [d] Bofluet's Praef. et Con. in Cant, and New Tranf. of So., lomon's Song : the learned author of which characterizes the fever\ days by a different divifion. going OF THE SONG OF SOLOMON. SI I going out to his ufual occupations. This divifion is at leaft probable, as it throws fome light on the book. Some have conceived [e], that thefe periods are figurative of ieven analogous and correfpondent ages that may be iuppofed to extend from Chrift to the end of the world : which is a very unauthorised conjecture, and juftly rejected by the mod judicious commentators. [e]' As Cecceius;' X 4 GENERAL [.,512 ] „r. *.T"' .1 . I tI. — %tpr ".. ft" au^y: GENERAL" PREFACE TO THE PROPHETS. THE fecond of thofe great divifions under which the Jews clafied the books of the Old Tefta- jnent was that of the Prophets [a]. This, as has been before obferved [b], comprehended originally thirteen books ; but the Talmudical doctors [c] re- jecting Ruth, Job, Lamentations, Daniel, Efther, Ezra, Nehemiah, and the Chronicles, as hagiogra- phical, reckon only eight prophetical books; calling thofe of Joftiua, of Judges, of Samuel, and of Kings, the four books of the former Prophets ; and thofe of Ifaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the. twelve lefier Prophets (comprized into one) as the four books of the later Prophets ; by which means they deprive fome books of a rank to which they are entitled ; and by parting Ruth, Nehemiah, and Lamentations, [a] Jofeph. cont. Apion. Lib, I. [b] Introduft. p. 10. fc] Bava Bathra, c. i, frojn TO THE PROPHETS. 313 from the books to which they were feverally united, enlarge the catalogue of theircanonicaf books. As the rabbinical notions concerning the degrees of in- fpiration cannot be allowed to affect "the dignity of any of the facred writings [r>] : and as the preten- tions of every book are feverally confidered in a leparate chapter, it is uhneceffary to examine the propriety of fuch an arrangement in this preface^ in which it is dciigned to treat "in a general way, of the character of the Prophets, and of the nature and evidence of that infpiration, under the influence of ■which they wrote [e]. The Prophets were thole illuftrious perfons who v/ere raifed up by God among the Ifraelites", as the rninifters of his diipeniations. They flouriflied in a continued iaccefiion for above a thoufand }rearsTV].; all co-operating in the fame deiigns, and confpiriug in one fpirit to deliver the fame doctrines, and to prophefyconcerningthe fame future bleffings. Moles, the firft and greateft of the Prophets, having efta- blifhed God's firft covenant ; thole who followed him were employed in explaining its nature ; in opening its spiritual meaning ; in inftrucling the Jews ; and in preparing them for the reception of that fecoiid difpenfation [g] which it prefigured. Their preten- [d] Glaffius Difput. I. in Pfalm ex. [e] Introduction, p. 10. £f] Luke i. 70. reckoning from Mofes to Mataclu. [c] Matt. xi. 13. 1 Mace. iv. 46. Coiri. Maam. Hi. $. 39. Mafl'ec. Sotah, cap, ult. Maimon, Bartiner. Gem. Sanh. tap. i, §. 3. lions 314 GENERAL PREFACE fions to be confidered as God's appointed fervants, were demonftrated by the unimpeachable integrity of their characters ; by the intriniic excellence and ten- dency of their initru&ioir [h] ; and by the difmtef- cfted zeal, and undaunted fortitude [i], with which they perfevered in their great defigns, Th'efe were frill farther confirmed by the miraculous proofs which they diiplayed of divine fupport [k], and by the im- mediate completion of manylefsimportantprediclions which they uttered [l]. Such were the credentials of their exalted character, which the Prophets furnimed to their contemporaries; and we, who having lived to witnefs the appearance of the fecond difpenjpation, c^n look back to the connection which fubfifted be- tween the two covenants, have received additional evidence of the infpiration of the Prophets, in the atteftations of our Saviour and his apoftles [m] ; and in the retrofpecl of a germinant and gradually ma- turing fcheme of prophecy, connected in all its parts, 'and ratified in the accompliihment of its great ob- ject, the advent of the MefTiah. We have ftill far- ther incontrovertible proof of their divine appoint- ment, in the numerous prophecies which in thefe later days are fulfilled, and ftill under our own eyes continue to receive their completion, [h] Deut. xiii. i — 3. [1] Origen. cont. Ce'f. Lib. VII. p. 336. edit. Cant« [k] jofti.x. 13. 1Sam.xii.18. 2 Kings i. 10. Ifa. xxxviii. 8. [l] Deut. xviii. 22. 1 Sam. ix. 6. 1 Kings xiii. 3. Ifaiah xiii. 9. Jerem. xxviii. 9. Ezek. xxxiii. 53. [m] Luke I. 70. xviii. 31. A&s vii, 42, xxiv. 14. Rom, xvi„ 26. Ephef, ii, 20. 2 Fct, i. 21, Though T© THE PROPHETS. 315 Thou g h many perfons are mentioned in fcripture £.s Prophets, and the Talmudifts reckon up fifty-five {V], whom they conceive to have been entitled to this diftinction, we are concerned only with thofe whole books have been admitted into the canon ; who are eminently ruled Prophets [o], as they were unqueftionably inspired with the knowledge of fu- jture events ; whole writings have been preferved for the permanent advantage of the church, as deicrip* tive of the oeconomy of the divine government, as fraught with the lellbns of revealed wifdom, and a* bearing inconteftibie evidence to the truth and pre- tentions of the chriitian religion. The nature and character of that infpiration by which the Prophets were enabled to communicate divine initru6tions and predictions, has been the fub- jtc~t. of much diiquifition. With refpecl; to the mode by which the Holy Spirit might operate on the under- ftanding of its agents, when employed in the com- pofition of facred writ, we can form no preciie ideas, as we have no acquired experience to aflift our conceptions; we can judge of it only by its effects, for of the invifible agency of a divine power we can [n] Including feven propheteffes. Vid. Gem. Maff. Megil. [o] UfoipSvi, Propheta, from IIpo-)f*i, to foretel. The facred writers applied the word K'nJ, Nabia, with great latitude, as well to falfe prophets, as to thofe idolatrous priefts whom they called prophets of the grove. Vide i Kings xviii. J9? 22. It appears, likewife, to have been fometimes ufed in the fame loofe fenfe as n^o^Tn? is employed by St. Paul fynoni- moufly with the Latin word Vates, a mufieian or poet. Vid. I Tit. i. 12. Seldcn, de Diis Syris Syntag. ii, c. iii. Maimon. More Nevoch;, P, III. c. xxix. have 316 GENERAL PREFACE have no adequate apprehcnfion. There is caufe, however, to fuppoie that the fpirit operated chiefly on the reasoning faculties of the mind, however the imagination might be kindled by its influence. It appears rather to have enlightened the intellect than to have inflamed the fancy [p]. The Prophets them- felves, as men, neither viiionary nor enthuiiaftic in their previous character, as not acting under the bias of any glopmy or fuperftitious notions, could not have been liable to be deceived by the deluiions of a clouded or intemperate imagination [q]. They muft themfelves, by the itrong effects of the divine impulfe, have been fenfible of a fupernatural control, and they mult have been capable of deciding on its character by the clear and diftinct impreflions which thev received. Thev muft have been convinced of their own infpiration by the difcoveries of an en- lightened mind, as well as by that fpontaneous and unwonted facility with which they delivered their important convictions. And the people had a cri- terion to judge of the truth of their prctenfions, Jince H the iigns of immediate accomplishment, which they uttered, were not fulfilled ; or if their inftructions were delivered in the name of fahe divinities, they were to be rejected [r]. As to the extent of this Infpiration, and whether we are to confider it as general or reftricted, it mult be remarked, that as it would be abfurd to fuppofe that the fpirit guided the Prophets only by occalionai [p] Maunon. More Nevoch, P. II. c. xxxvi, fcj^ Gcom. Sch2b. Zoliar. col. 40$. £r] Deut. xiii, 1 — 3. xviii. 18 — 22. anU TO THE PROPHETS. 317 and defultory ftarts, and partially enlightened them by imperfeft communications, lb we cannot butadmit them to have been uniformly under its influence ; and in coniequence, to have been invariably preferved from deception and error, when engaged in the compofition of the facred books. The fpirit did not certainly deprive them of the ufe of their faculties lb as to render them the mere inftruments of con- veying the voice of God ; but it fuperintended and guided them in the exercife of their own underftand- ings ; ibmetimes inftrueting them by immediate reve- lation, and Ibmetimes directing them in the com- munication of that knowledge which they had de- rived from the ordinary fources of intelligence [s]. We are authorised, it is true, in the fcripture, to conclude, that the Holy Ghoft (who, in his appro- priate character, was more immediately an agent in communicating infpiration) [t], did, indeed, "fpeafc by the Prophets ;" but we are not, therefore, to coniider the fpirit of infpiration as one perfon of the ever-glorious Trinity, dictating to the facred writers every fentence and exprefTion of fcripture; but ra- ther as a gift of God, a divine influence which open- ed their understandings to a discernment of the will of God. This miraculous power may be reprefented to our conceptions, as to its effects, under different points of view; it maybe defcribed lirft, as analogous to a light mining on the minds of the Prophets, and -dilperfmg thofe miits, which the corruption of hu- [s] Seeker's fixft fermon on the infpiration of ScripUire. [t] Mark xii. $6. Afts i. i6.-«xvui. 25. Heb. Hi. 7. i*. 8. 2 Pet. i. 2i. man 315 <~rE::LKAL preface man nature had engendered ; which enabled them to read thole natural principles that were originally engraven on the mind ; which awakened their fa- culties to a more lively perception of truth, and aflifted their real on to act as free from prejudice and reftraint. It mult be confidered ftill farther, as in- ftrueting them by an influx of divine knowledge, irf thofe truths which could be obtained unij b) im- mediate information from God ; or under one col- lective description, it may be reprefented as guiding and conducting the Prophets, by various means, to the knowledge of all truth, human and divine. When they wrote hiftorically, there could be no ne- ceflity for a revelation of thofe events of which the knowledge might be obtained by their own observa- tion, and enquiries [v]. They recorded what they themfelves had feen, or on fome occaiions, what they had received from unqueftionable documents, of credible witnefTes, the fpirit, indeed, bearing tefti- mony. The Prophets generally take care themfelves to inform us what they derived immediately from God ; and to diftinguilh what they fpeak in their own characters as recording hiftorical events, or even as reai'oning from the doctrines which had been re- vealed unto them. Still however it is not inconfiil- ent to maintain, that they wrote under the influence [v] The Prophets were, however, fometimes enabled to de- fcribe paft events by immediate revelation : and the word pro- phecy is applied to the difcovcry of paft circumftances obtained by fupernatural means. Vid. t Sam. ix. 20. 2 Kings v. 2£, 26. Matt. xxvi. 6. Huet. Defin. IV. Witfius de Prophet, Lib. I. cap. ii. Of TO. THE PROPHETS* 3*9 ©f uniform infpiration ; that is, they were uniformly guided by a divine fpirit, which enabled them by various means of intelligence to difcover truth ; and to feleet. and record with iincerity what might be confident with their deflgns. And whenever they communicate divine initruction concernincrtheattri- butes and dciigns of God, defcribing particulars which could not be the objects of human fagacity or memory, they muft have derived their knowledge by pofitive revelation from above [u]. Divine revelations, were obtained by various ways ; for without dilating on the internal irradiation above-mentioned, and without following the Jewhli writers [x] in their distinctions concerning the dif- ferent degrees of infpiration which aiiifted the au- thors in the composition of the prophetical or hagio- graphical books refpectively [v], we may oblerve, in agreement with the accounts of fcripture, that though the divine revelations were all equally infal- lible, yet that a greater degree of illumination was [v] Stackhoufe's Preface to the Hift. of Bible, p. z6. [x] The moll learned Jews admit three degrees of Infpira- tion. i. The Gradus Mofaicus. 2. That which is peculiarly called Prophecy, and which was obtained by dreams and vifions. And 3. That which they call Ruach Hakkodefh, by which they fuppofe the Hagiographi to have been infpired. The Jewiih notions, however, though fometimes juft, are generally very fanciful. Vid. Maimon. Mere Nevcch, P. II. c. xlv. [y] Abarbin, in Efaiah, ch, iv. Maimon. de Fund, teg, c. vii. imparted 320 GENERAL PREFACE imparted to fonie perfons than to others [z] ; and that this conferred a proportionate dignity on the Prophet So favoured. The more important commu- nications were like wife fometimes furnifhed with more confpicuous evidence of revelation, as the diS- penSation imparted to Mofes was introduced with a correspondent di Splay, and fuperior iblemnity. The predictions of MoSes were not more certainly ful- filled than thofe uttered by Ilaiah, yet is the former perfonage pofitively declared in Scripture to have been honoured by an higher revelation in the ex- preffion of having converted with God " face to face [a]," than was ISaiah, or any fubfequent Prophet, whoSe illumination was obtained from dreams or vifions. The revelations which are related in fcripture to have been communicated to the Patriarchs, fome- times without any Specification of an intermediate agent, and fometimes by the miniftry of angels, have been frequently fuppofed to have been convey- ed in dreams and vinous, without any actual appear- ance. 13ut certainly ibme of the relations respecting thefe, cannot but be underftood in a real and histo- rical fenfe; as that, for inftance, in which God is deScribed as having addrefled Adam in Paradife [b]; and that in which the angels are represented to have appeared to, and to have converted with Abra- [zj Numb, xil 8. Deut. xxxiv. 10. 2 Kings ii. 9. Heb„ i. 1. ' [a J Exod. xxxiii. 1 1, [b] Gep. iii. 8. ham; TO THE PROPHETS. 321 ham [c] ; in both of which, as well as in fome other cafes [d], it muft be admitted that the abfolute ap- pearance of ibme divine perfonage, the Deity, or his angelical reprefentative, is intended in a ftric"t and pofitive lenle ; as it mould feem, likewile, that God fometimes addreffed his fervants by a voice from heaven [e], without any vifible manifeftation of ihm- felf or his angel. [c] Gen. xviii. alfo Gen. xvii. i — 3. It is probable, that wherever God is faid to have appeared, it is to be underftood that he appeared by fome meifenger, the reprefentative of the divine Majefty, and authorifed to fpeak in God's name ; this may be collected from John i. 18. and v. 37. Vid. Gen. xvi. 7, 13. xxii. 1, i!. Judges vi. n — 23. and other places, where the Lord and the angel are words interchangeably ufed. Vid. Auguft. de Trinit. c. xi. It was univerfally believed in the ancient church, that all thofe divine appearances defcribed in the Old Teftament, whether actual or in vifion, were made by the Logos, or fecond perfon of the Trinity, Comp. Ifaiah vi. i„ with John xii. 41. Vid. Bull's Defenf. Fid. Nic. c. i. feci. I. The ancient Jews, likewife, fuppofed that the intended Meffiah appeared as the reprefentative of Jehovah. Vid. Allix. Judg. of jews church, ch. xiii. xiv. xv. Juft. Mart. Dialog. 249 — 26c, 408. edit. Thirlb. [d] Numb. xxii. 22 — 35. [ej Gen. xxii. 11. Exod. xx. 22. Deut. iv. 12. This mode of revelation was called by the Jews btp r\2, Bath. CoL Filia Vocis, the daughter Voice, or daughter of a voice, becaufe when a voice or thunder came out of heaven, another voice came out of it. It is by them fuppofed to have fucceeded prophecy, and to have conveyed instruction after the death of Maiachi. It certainly diftinguifhed the dawn of the Gofpel difpenfarion. Vid. Matt. iii. 17. xvii. 5. John xii. 28, 29. Pirke R. Laezer, c. xliv. Jofsph. Archseol. Lib. XIII. c, xviii, and Lightfoot in Mutt. iii. 17. Y Whxn 322 GENERAL PREFACE When communications were obtained from an abfolute converge with the Deity, every particular contained in them, muit have been preciiely and diftinc~tly revealed. And hence the inftru6tions im- parted to Mofes were lb remarkably perfpicuous and explicit No fuceeeding Prophet under the Jewifh difpenfation could, indeed, boaft of fo intimate and tmrclerved a correfpondence with the Deity as that ill urinous Legiflator enjoyed ; though unqucfrion- ablv fomcMvere favoured with divine revelations im- parted by the miniitxy oi' angels ; who feem, from the accounts of fcripture, abfolutely to have appeared and eonverfed with them [f] ; notwithstanding the Jewith writers confider all thefe relations as defcrip- tive of vifionary reprefentations : maintaining that (rod comprehended in his addrefs to Aaron an4 Miriam, every mode of revelation by which he de- signed to enlighten the Prophets that ihould fueceed to Mofes [g]. The infut-utkm of the Urim and Thummim, which was coeval with the time of Mofes [h], fur- nilhed the means of obtaining divine information to- his contemporaries, as well as to Joihua, and others who fuccceded him, till the building of the temple, or porlibly till the captivity [i]. As we know not in what ("f] Jofhuav. 13 — r^. Judges xlii. 3,, 13 — 20. Jobxxxviii. 1. [g] Numb. xii. 6. Maiinon. More Nevoch. P. II. c. xli. [h] Exod. xxviii. ^^. Numb, xxvii. 21. Mcdc's Difcourfe xxxv. [1] It is uncertain when the confultation by the Urim and Thummim ceafed. Some think that it was appropriate to the •theocracy 3 3 TO THE PROPHETS. 323 what manner this myfterious ornament contributed to procure divine instruction : whether, as fome have fuppofed, it furnifhed intelligence by the brilliancy and configuration of itsinfcribed characters; or whe- ther, as is moft probable, it was the conlecrated means appointed for the attainment of anfwers by an audible voice [k], we are ftill certain from the na- ture and verity of that information, as given upon important occafions, that like all other modes of divine revelation under the Jewiih ceconomy, it was clear and perfpicuous. As far as it was deligned to inftruct the people in public concerns, it conveyed precife directions ; and its predictions of future prof- perity or punimment were delivered, not like thole of the Pagan oracles, in ambiguous and equivocal language,but in appropriate and exprels declarations. It is certain, alio, that independently of, or in con- junction with, thofe communications which the high- prieft obtained by the Urim and Thummim, God did furnilh initruction to others by an articulate voice, which proceeded from between the two che- rubims above the mercy feat, in the Tabernacle [l] ; in a manner alluiive poflibly to the circum- ftance of God's (peaking by angels. The other modes by which God vouchfafed to re- theocracy ; fome imagine that it ftopped after the building of the temple. It continued poilibly till the deft ruction of the temple, and it was expected to revive after the captivity ; Ezra ii. 36. Nehem. vii. 65. though probably it did not. [k] Judges i. 1. 2 Sam. v. 23, 24. [l] Exod. xxv. 22. Levit. i. 1. Numb. vii. 89. ix. 9. I Sam. iii. 3. and following verfes. Y 2 real 324- GENERAL PREFACE veal his inftructions to the Prophets, were thole of dreams and vilions [m]. With refpect to dreams, they were lbmetimes imparted as admonitions from God to pcrfons vvho had no title to the prophetic, character [n]; In thefc cafes they were doubtlels lefs diftinct in their impreffion, and rather calculated to ftrike and amaze, than to enlighten the mi ad. Thole who received them either waited their expli- cation in the event, or applied for their interpretation to perfons who were endued with a portion of the divine fpirit : and the power of explaining dreams appears to have been an eminent characteristic of the Prophets [0]. The dreams which revealed future fcenes to the imaginations of the Prophets were doubtlels very forcible, and evidently predictive. They are fup- pofed by the Jews to have been introduced by the immediate efficiency of an angel, who either add re fl- ed the Prophets by a voice, or pictured narrative circumftances to their minds : but however it might vary in its circumftances, this mode of communica- tion by dreams mult have always conveyed very dif- tinct impreffions. When no voice was heard, and information was to be collected from fome paraboli- [m] It is remarkable, that Homer enumerates three mod^s of obtaining divine communications, which , correfpond with thofe appointed for the conveyance of revelations to God's felefted people. Vid. Iliad, Lib. I. I. 62, 6^;. [n] Maimon. More Nevoch, Par. II. c. xli. Philo jud:e, mj&i i-e SscTrspzrly; eik»( asu^g. Gemarifts in Baruchoth. c. i.\. . Gen. xl. Dan. iv. [o] Jercm. xxiii. 28. cal TO THE PROPHETS. 385 cal fcenes, the dreams were probably characterized by a lively and regular fucceffion of objects, and by an accurate difplay of intelligible particulars. They mu ft have excited refpect, as differing widely from the wild, and indeterminate fancies ; the vague, and incoherent images that conftitute ordinary dreams. In vifions, which the Jews coniidcred as a mode cf inftruction fuperior to dreams [p], the Prophet was convinced of his fubjeetionto a divine power, by the miraculous fufpeniion of his common faculties ; for though on thefe occafions the infpired peribu was awake, his fenfes were entranced [q], and inienfir ble to all external objects ; or fo far enraptured, as to be alive only to impreflions from extatic reprefen- tations [r], He was likewife often certified, as in dreams, by diftinct admonitions of fome particulars readily afcertained, and enabled to forefee fome cir- cumftances which in. mediately came to pafs. In all the cafes here defcribed, the Prophets could not, without doubting the cleareft and molt palpable evidence, diftruit the truth of the revelations which they received ; and with refpect, to us, we have am- ple reafcn from a collective confideration, of their writings, to be convinced that their infpiration was accompanied with fufficient characters to diftinguifh it from the dreams of enthufiafm, or the vifions of [?] Maiifl. More Nevqchj Par. II. cap. xlv. and Bayley's Effay on Infpiration. {o] Numb. xxiv. 16. [r] Ifaiah vi. i. Ezek, xl. 2. Dan. viii. 17, 18. x. 8. Afts x . 11, Y 3 fyncy- 326 GENERAL PREFACE fancy [s]. The accomplifhment of their predictions, and the purity of their doctrines, are indeed irrefra- gable proofs of their divine appointment to propriety, and to inftrucl; mankind. Upon all occafions on which the Prophets are related to have been favoured with an intimation of the divine will, we find that they betrayed no fymp- toms of a credulous or heated imagination. Cautious and deliberate in their examination of miraculous re- velations, they appear to have hefitated at firft as doubtful of their reality ; and often required a iign, or fome additional evidence, to ratify the commiffion which they received, and to authoriie their reliance on the divine fupport in its execution. This calm and rational temper, which rendered the Prophets diitru fitful of their own fenfes if iingly addrefled, and folicitous to fcrutinize the reality of every ap- pearance, however miraculous in its circumftances, demonftrates clearly that thev were not the dupes of their own fancy; and that they expecledno reverence for their commiffion, unlcfs characterized with the ian&ions and authority of divine appointment j and very finking marks of this difpofition were dif played by the Prophets, as may be inftanced in the cafe of Moles [t], in that of Samuel [u], and in tiiat of Jonah [xji [s] Bifhop Hurd's fourth Introd, Sermon on Prophec Srnith's Difcourfe. Jcr. xxiii. 28. [t] Excd. hi. and iv. fu] 1 Sam. iij. [x] Jonah i. Under TO THE PROPHETS. fCr Under the immediate influence of the impreffions which the Prophets received from thefe communica- tions, they appear to have executed their commiffion by uttering their inftructions with a divine enthu- fiafm. Enraptured by the effects of that inipiration which had enlightened their minds, and urged by the efficacy of a controlling power [v.], they delivered their predictions in an animated and impreffivc man- ner, and often with fome bodily actions and geitures [z]. Thefe naturally accompanied an earnett de- livery of important convictions, and as reftriCted in coniiltency with the dignity and venerable deport- ment of the Prophets, they were very different from thofe frenzied and extravagant gefticulations by which importers have fought to recommend and enforce their fantaftic rhapfodies [a.]. The word prophecy is often uied in fcripture to iignify the fmging of praifes to God ; in hymns doubtlefs of infpired excellence, and occafionally animated with predictions of futurity [b]. The fpirit of prophecy, in this fenfe of the word, appears ibme times by God's permiiiion, to have communi- [y] Ifa. xxi. 3. Jerem. xx. 9. Dan. x. S. Amos iii. 8. [z] Numb. xxiy. 4, 16. Ezek. iii. 14. Habakkuk iii. 16, H. Albo, Lib. III. c. x. Smith's Difc. [a] Chryfoft. Homil. xxix. in i Cor. Hieron. Pra?f. in Nahum, and Proleg. in Habac. Lucan, Lib. V. Schol. in Plutum. Ariftoph. Mt\c\&} Lib. VI. Plato in Timseurn. Jamb* de Myft. feft. 3. c. ix. Epiphan. ady. Hxr. L. II. f. 1. c. 3. p. 404. [b] Hammond on Luke i. 67. Numb. xi. 25. The dial - dee Paraphraft tranflates Q'NOJ, " praifmg God." 1 Chron. >>xv. 1. Y 4 catcd, 3'2S GENERAL PREFACE cated itfelf to thoie who heard others prophefy, the divine afflatus being conveyed by a kind of fympa- thy, and harmonious affection [c]. The Prophets who were educated in thoie fchools of which the in- ftitution is attributed to Samuel [d], were principally employed in this fpiritual fervice ; and thus by being exerciled in habits of piety, and duly attuned and fah&ified for the reception of the divine fpirit, they fee in to have been often favoured and enlightened by its fuggeftions. The more remarkable prophecies, however, which referred to diftant periods, which received their accomplishment in after ages, and ftill continue to excite our admiration, were delivered by perions, often indeed iele£ted from thefe ichoofe, but evidently endued with a larger portion of the fpirit, and more eminently diftinguifhed by tho marks of divine favour. Such were the principal, if not the only mode* by which God vouchsafed to reveal himfelf to the prophets ; always, we have feen, in a manner con- iiftent with the greatnefs of his attributes, and with the dignity of the prophetic character ; and all thofe communications which in fcripture are laid to have been derived from God without any particular de- i'cription [e] of the manner in which they were con- veyed, [c] i Sam. x. £ — 10. xix. 20 — 24. Smith's Difc. on Pro« phecy. And Lowth's Prarlecl. Poet. 18. p. zi^. [d] Preface to Second Book of Samuel. [e] As when we are told, " thus faith the Lord;" or, " the word oi the Lord came ;" which is fometimes applied to per- fbns TO THE PROTIIETS. S2£ ve*yed, muft be underftood to have been received by one of thole channels which have been here pointed out. The Prophets, as might be expected from the diftinguifhed marks of divine approbation which they received, feem to have been fingularly qualified for the facred miniitry. It is not meant to include in this confideration thofe perfons of condemned or ambiguous character, who are represented in fcrip- ture as compelled occaiionally to give utterance to the fuggeftions of the facred fpirit ; but confining ourfelves to a contemplation of thofe who are de- clared to have been the appointed fervants of God, and whole infpired writings {till continue to inftruct mankind, it may be affirmed, that in the long and illuftrious fuccefiion from Tvlofes to Malachi, not one appears who was not entitled to confiderable re- verence by the difplay of great and extraordinary virtues [f]. Employed in the exalted office of teach- ing ions not endued with the prophetic character. Thefe exprefliorB import only, that the inftruftion was conveyed by the means then appointed, whether by angel, urim, prophet, or dream. Vid. Gen. xxii. i. withCalmet. Jofhua i. i. i Kings iii. n» Jer. i. 2 — 4. Hofea i. 1, &c. Maimon. More Nevoch, Par. II. c. xli. [f] 2 Pet. i. 21. The Hebrew doctors collect this general rule from a confideration of the characters of the gophers, that the fpirit of prophecy never refted upon any but a holy and wife man; one whofe paflions were allayed. Vid. R„ Albo Maam. iii. c. 36. Porta Mofis in Pocock's works. Abarb. Prasf. in xii. Prophet. Maiaion, More Nevoch, Par. II. c, xxx vr. 330 GENERAL PREFACE ing and reforming mankind, they appear to have been animated with a becoming and correipondent zeal. No unworthy paflions, nor diiingenuous mo- tives, were permitted to interfere with their great defigns. Not indeed, tftat they were always directed by the guidance of the fpirit to undeviating pro- priety of life, fince it is manifeit that they fometimes acted as unaflilifted men i abject to error; but not- withstanding thofe failings which their own ingenuous confefiions have unveiled, it appears, that in general their paflions were controlled in fubjection to thofe perfect laws which they taught, and that the ftrength of their convictions rendered them inienfible to fe- cular attractions. When not immediately employed in the difcharge of their facred office, they lived ie- queftered from the world in religious communities [g] ; or wandered " in deferts, in mountains, and in caves of the earth ;" diftinguifhed by their ap- parel, and by the general limplicity of their itile of life [h]. They were the eftablifhed oracjes of their country, and confulted upon all occafions when it was neceflary to collect the divine will on any civil or religious queftion ; and we hear of no fchifms or divifions while they flouriihed. They even con- c. xxxvi. Vid. alfo, Origen'. cont. Celf. Lib. VII. p. $36. edit. Cantab. Gem. Pefac. c. vi. The rule however is not univerfally true. Vid. Numb. xxiv. [g] There were fchools of the Prophets at Jerufalem, Bethel, Jericho, Ramah, and Gilgal. Vid. 2 Kings xxii. 14. 2 Kings ii. 5. 1 Sam. xix. 20. 2 Kings iv. 38. [k] 2 Kings i. 8. iv. 10, 38. vi. I. Ifa. xx. 2. Matt. iii. 4. Heb. xi. 38. Rev. xi. 3. defcended TO THE PROPHETS. 331 defccnded to inform the people of common concerns in trivial cafes, in order to preclude them from all pretence or excufe for reforting to idolatrous prac- tices, and heathen divinations; and they were always furniihed with fome prefcribed mode of confulting God, or obtained revelations by prayer [i] ; for we are not to fuppofe that they were invariably empow- ered to prophefy by any permanent or perpetual infpi- ration [k.]. Theie illuftrious perfonages were likewife as well the types, as the harbingers of that greater Prophet whom they foretold; and in the general out- line of their character, as well as in particular events of their lives, they prefigured to the Jews the future teacher of mankind. Like him, alio, they laboured by every exertion, to initrucl and reclaim ; reproving and threatening the fmful, however exalted in rank, pr encircled by power, withfuch fearlels confidence .and lincerity, as often excited refpecl. The moft intemperate princes were ibmetimes compelled un- willingly to hear and to obey their directions [l], though often lb incenfed by their rebuke, as to re- fent it by the fevereft periecutions. Then it was that the Prophets evinced the integrity of their cha- racters, by zealoufly encountering oppreffion, hatred, and death, in the caufe of religion. Then it was [i] Jerem. xxxiii. 3. [k] Maimon. More Nevoch, Pars II. cap. xxxvi. & xlv. Mofes, and as fome lay, David, were fuppofed to be exceptions to this remark, and to have been perpetually infpired. [l] 1 Kings xii. 21—24. xli1' 2 — $> xx- 42^ 45- xx^ -7- 7. Chron. xxviii, 9 — 14., that 332 GENERAL PREFACE" that they firmly fupported " trial of cruel mockings and icourgings, yea, moreover, of bonds and im- prifonment. They were ftoned, they were fawn afunder, were tempted, were flain with the fword : they wandered about, deftitute, afflicted, tormented [m] ;" evil intreated for thofe virtues of which the memorial mould flourim to pofterity, and martyred for righteouihefs, which when ever refentment ihould fubfide, it would be deemed honourable to reverence [n]. The manner in which the Prophets publifhed their predictions, was either by uttering them aloud in fome public place, or by affixing them on the gates of the temple [o], where they might be generally feen and read. Upon fome important occafions, when it was neceflary to roufe the fears of a dii- obedient people, and to recal them to repentance, the Prophets, as objects of univerfal attention, appear to have walked about publicly in fackcloth, and with every external mark of humiliation and forrow. They then adopted extraordinary modes of expreil- ing their convictions of impending wrath, and en- deavoured to awaken the app renditions of their country, by the molt linking illustration of threaten- ed punimment. Thus Jeremiah made bonds and yokes, and put them upon his neck [p], ftrongly to intimate [m] Heb. xi. 36, & fcq. James v. 10. [n] Matt, xxiii. 27 — 29. [o] Jer. vii. 2. iii. 10, Howel, Lib. VI. p. 167. [pj Jcrem. xxvii. It is clear from the account in the next chapter, that Jeremiah put the yoke on his own neck. Vich chap. TO THE PROPHETS. 333 intimate the iubjecltion that God would bring on the nations whomNebuchadnezzer mould iubdue. Iiaiah likewife walked naked, that is, without the rough garment of the Prophet [q], and barefoot [r], as a iign of the diftrefs that awaited the Egyptians. So Jeremiah broke the potter's vefiel [s] ; and Ezekiel publickly removed his houfehold goods [r] from the city ; more forcibly to repreient by thefe ac- tions fome correfpondent calamities ready to fall on nations obnoxious to God's wrath; this mode of chap, xxxviii. 10. So alfo, i Kings xxii. n. Acts xxi. n. But, as to fend bonds and yokes may imply only figuratively, to predict captivity, it is not neceflary to fuppofe that Jeremiah literally fent yokes and bonds to all the kings enumerated in the account, but only that he foretold their fate ; perhaps il- luftrafing his prophecy by fome fignificant tokens. Vid. Mede's Com. on Apocal. Part I. p. 470. Waterland's Tracts on Jcrem. xxvii. 23. [o] Ifa. xx. Harmer's Obfervat. vol. iv. p. 402. John xxi. 7. Origen cont. Celf. Lib. VII. p. 336. [r] It is faid in the text, three years, which means at inter- vals during that time. Some think that we mould underltand three days ; a year being fometimes placed in prophetic lan- guage for a day. Others maintain, that the Hebrew text, agree- ably to the Maforetic punctuation, applies the three years, not to Ifaiah's walking, but to the calamity thereby forefhewn, and the Seventy, St. Jerom, and our old Englifh verfions, adopt this conftruction. Others, laftly, confider the account as the narrative of a tranfaction in vilion, or as a parable related by Ifaiah. [s] Jerem. xix. [t] Ezek. xii. 7. compared with 2 Kings xxv. 4, 5. where the accomplifament of this typical prophecy is related. Vid. alfo, Ezek. xxxvii. t6 — 20. exprefling 334 general Preface fcxpreffing important circumftances by a&ion, bein# cuitomary and familiar among all Eaftern nations. The conduct of the Prophets upon thefe occafions rauft be confidered ^ ith reflection on the importance of their miniftry ; and with great allowance for dif- ference of manners in their time ; and then will this mode of prophefying by actions, appear to have been not only very linking and imprefiive, but ftrictly agreeable to the defign and decorum of the pro* phetic character. It has, however, been ftrenuoufly maintained, that many actions attributed to the Pro- phets, and even ibme of thofc which have been here represented as real, were not actually performed ; and that many of thefe accounts mould be confidered as parables related by the Prophets ; or as defcrip- tive of tranlactions in vifion, intended ftrongly to imprefs the imagination of the Prophets, and to in- form them fymbolically of thofe things in which they were to inftruct the people [u]. So very pofitive. have been the fentiments on both fides, of thofe who have fupported thefe oppofite opinions, that it would be prefumptuous to decide on the fubject. The Prophets themfelves fometimes inform us only of certain commands which they received, without ex- [u] Where it is faid, that " the hand of -the Lord was upon the Prophet," or " the word of the Lord came unto him/' it 19 generally thought, that a vifion is defcribed ; and where the inftrudion of the Prophet only was defigncd, the tranfadlion was probably confined to the fcene of the Prophet's imagination. Vid. Gen. xv. 4, 5. Jerem. i. it, 13. xviii. 1 — 4. xxiv. t — 4.' Ezelc. iii. 22 — 27. viii. xxxvii. plaining TO THE PROPHETS. 335 plaining whether they underftood them as figurative inftructions to be defcribed to the people, or whether they literally obeyed them. This appears in the account given by Ezekiel, in which he informs us, that he was directed to make a mimic portraiture of a fiege, and to continue a great length of time lying on his fide ; as alfo in that, in which he declares himfelf to have been commanded to lhave and to confume his hair [x]. The nature of theie injunc- tions feems to import only fome figurative inftructions given, and obeyed in vifion [y]. At other times the Prophets defcribe not merely the precept, but the tranfaction, with particulars lb minutely and cir- cumftantially detailed, that we might be led to ad- mit a pofitive hiftorical fenfe, did not the difficulties [x] Ezekiel iv. and v. [y] It is not pofitively afTerted, that thefe injunctions were not literally executed, but that, probably, they never were, fince Ezekiel does not profefs actually to have performed them ; and the nature of the thing feems to prove, that they were afted only in the imagination of the Prophet. But. if the hiftorical fenfe be received, it certainly may be vindicated from all objections. Ezekiel might have been miraculoufly enabled to bear the fatigue of lying fo long on his fide ; and the ob- jection of Maimonides to the reality of the fecond tranfaction is frivolous, for though it was unlawful for the prieft to (have (Vid. Levit. xxv. 5* Ezek. xliv. 20.) the Law might certainly be difpenfed with, by God's command ; and, as uncuftomary, it muft have been more remarkable as a iign. The portraiture of the fiege, as reprefented by the Prophet, whether it were real or vifionary, was deferiptive of the circumftances that occurred it the taking of Jerusalem, Compare Ezek. 1 — 3. with Jofeph- Antiq. Lib. X, c, xi. 336 GENERAL PREFACE and inadequate advantage of an a£hial performance tend to demonftrate that the fcene muft have been fictitious. Thus, however circumftantial be the re- lation of Jeremiah, relative to his concealment of the girdle, it is difficult to conceive that God mould command the Prophet to take two fuch long journies [z] merely for the purpofe of this typical illuftration [a]. Nor was it poffiblc, without miracles multi- plied for a purpofe which might as well have been effected by a prophetic vifion, that Jeremiah mould make the various nations which he enumerates, drink of the cup of fury, which he profefled to have received at God's hand [b]. Thefc tranfactions, if performed in vifion, might be defcribed by the Prophets as figns and intimations to thofe whom they addrefied. The [z] Jerem. xiii. tc Abfit," fays Maimonides, in a fpirit of hafty and indignant piety, " ut Deus Prophetas faos ftultis vel Ebriis fimiles reddat." Eut this judicious writer appears to judge too precipitately, prove, that the Jews, before the coming of Chrift, be- lieved the feparate exiftence of the foul, and a future ftate of re- ward ar.d punLlnient, as 352 GENERAL PREFACE as well as from that firm confidence in a refurrec- tion and future judgment which they now derive from the promifes of Mofes, and of the Prophets [k], and which many expert in the time of the Meffiah [l]. The language of the Prophets is remarkable for its magnificence. Each writer is diitinguifhed for peculiar beauties ; but their (tile in general may be characterized as ftrong, animated, and impreffive. Its ornaments are derived not from accumulation of epithet, or laboured harmony, but from the real grandeur of its images, and the majeftic force of its expreffions. It is varied with ftiiking propriety, and enlivened with quick but eafy tranlitions. Its iudden burfts of eloquence, its earneit warmth, its affecting exhortations and appeals, afford very in- tereiting proofs of that lively impreffion, and of that infpired conviction, under which the Prophets wrote ; and which enabled them among a people not dii- tinguifhed for genius, to furpafs in every variety of compofition, the moft admired productions of Pagan antiquity. U the imagery employed by the facred writers appear fometimes to partake of a coarfe and indelicate caft, it muft be recollected, that the eaftern manners and languages required the molt forcible representations ; and that the mafculine and indignant ipirit of the Prophets led them to adopt the moft [k] Buxtorf. Synag. Jud. c. iii. Porta Mofis, p. 52. et jfeq, and Pocock's notes, c. vi. [l] Pocock. Notae Mifcel. in Porta Mofis, c. vi. and Mcdc's Placita Do&. Hebrs, vol, ii, B, 3, energetic T0 THE PROPHETS. 35$ energetic and defcriptive exprefiions. No (tile is perhaps fo highly figurative as that of the Prophets. Every object of nature and of art which could fur- niih allufions, is explored with induftry ; every fcene of creation, and every page of fcience, leems to have unfolded its rich varieties to the facred writers, who in the fpirit of eaftern poetry, delight in every kind of metaphorical embellimment. Thus by way of illultration, it is obvious to remark, that earthly dignities and powers are fymbolized by the celeftial bodies ; the effects of moral evil are {hewn under the Itorrns and convulfions of nature; the pollutions of fin are represented by external impurities ; and the beneficial influence of righteoufnefs is depicted by the ferenity and confidence of peaceful life [m1. This allegorical language being founded on ideas univerfally prevalent, and adhered to with invariable relation, and regular analogy, has furniihed great ornament and elegance to the facred writings. Some- times, however, the inlpired penmen drew their al- lufions from local and temporary fources of meta- phor ; from the peculiar icenery of their country ; from the idolatries of heathen nations ; from their own hiftory and circumftances ; from the fervice of their temple, and the ceremonies of their religion ; from manners that have faded, and cuftoms that have elapfed. Hence many appropriate beauties have [m] Newton on Daniel, Jones's lectures on the Bgurative language of fcripture. Vitringa in Efaiam xxxiv. 4. Lancaftar's Abridgment of Daubuz. Mede. Biihop Hurd's 9th fermon on Prophecy. A a vaniflied. 354 GENERAL PREFACE vaniilied. Many defcriptions, and many repfefen* tations, that muft have had a lblemn importance among the Jews, are now confidered, from a change ofeircumftance. in a degraded point of view. Hence, likewife, here and there a fliade of obicurity [n]. In general, however, the language of (capture, though highly fublime and beautiful, is eafy and intelligible to all capacities. The divine truth which it contains is defcribed in the muff, clear and familiar manner; it ail limes, as it were, the drefs of mankind, and in- ftructs us with the condcfcenlion and familiarity of human converfe. Not defigned merely for the learn- ed and the wife, it adopts a plain and perfpicuous language, which lias all the graces of fnnplicity, and all the beauties of unaffected eloquence. In treat" ing of heavenly things it reveals myfteries to which the human imagination could never have (bared ; and difclofes the attributes and conduct of God in reprefentations analogous to our ideas, without de- grading them by any unworthy defcription [o]. It prefents the divine perfections incarnate, as it were, to our apprehenfions, by the illuftration of familiar images. Thus the human affections and corporeal properties which are afcribed to the Deity in i'crip- [n] Burrdy's Introduction to the Sacred Books. [o] {( Lex loquitur lingua filiorum hominum," was a Jewiih remark. But it has been obferved, that no fenfes which favour of grofs corporiety, are afcribed to God, as touching or tailing ; it being agreed, fays Maimonidcs, (f Dcum non compungi cum corporibus per contaftum corporalcm." Vid, Maimon. Par. I. c. xxvi. xxxiii. xlvii. ture, TO THE PROPHETS. 255 (arc, are level to the notions of the vulgar, and yet are readily underftood by enlightened minds to be deicriptive only offome correfpondentattributes that coniift. with the excellency of the divine nature ; fo that when revelation accommodates its language to our reftncted intellects, it is with fuch faithful ad- herence to the real and effential properties of the Deity, and to the true character of heavenly things, that it is calculated to raile the conceptions, and not to debaie the theme. It remains to be oblerved, that the greateft part of the prophetic books, as well as thole more eipe- daily ftiled poetical, was written in lbme kind of meaiure or verfe [p] ; though the Jews of very early times appear to have been infenfible of the exiftence of any numerical arrangement in them [o_J. As the Hebrew has been a dead language for near 2000 years, and as it is deftitute of vowels, we can have [?] The hiftorieal relations interfperfed in thefe books are of courfe excluded from this remark. So likewife the book of Daniel, which is chiefly narrative, has nothing poetical^ nor has that of Jonah, except the prayer, which is an ode. The grave and elevated prophecies of Ezekiel, (whom Bifhop Lowth has characterized as an orator rather than a poet) feem to reject metrical arrangement. The odes which are in the books of lfaiah, Ezekiel, and Habakkuk, are of a diftinft and peculiar fpecies of poetry. Vid. Lowth's Praelec~t. 25, 26, 27, 28. [o] Mod of the prophecies in the hiftorical books are un- queftionably written in fome kind of meafure, as thofe of Noah, Jacob, and Balaam, and the divine hymn of Mofes in the thirty., fecond chapter of Deuteronomy ; all of which furnim. very beau- tiful fpecimens of metrical poetry. A a 21 no 3J6 GENERAL PREFACE no power of ascertaining the pronunciation, or even the number of its fyllables. The quantity and rhythm of its verfe nvaii therefore have entirely perimed ; and there can be no mode of difcovering the rules by which they were governed [it]. That the Hebrew poetry hi general, however, was controlled to fome kind of meafure,, is evident ; not only from the pe- culiar (election of unn •ial expreffions and phrafes, but alio from the artificial arrangement, and regular diftribution of many fentences, which run in parallel divilions, and correfpond, as it were, in equal pe- riods ; but whether this meafure reiulted from the obfervance of certain definite numerical feet, or was regulated by the ear and the harmony of lines of iimilar cadence, is uncertain [s]. The fententious modulation, however, which in confequence ob- tained, was fo ftrong, as to be transfufed, and to pre- dominate in our tranilation. It is obfcrvable, alio, that the meafure is often varied ; and even fometimes [r] The meafure of the modern Jews h very different from that of the facred writings, and was probably borrowed from the Arabians. [s] Lowth's Praeleft. 3, and 19. et rnetricae Hariana? Confat. The learned deny that correfpondence and fimilitude between the Hebrew and the Grecian meafures which St. Jerom, on the au. thority of Jofephus and Origen, maintained to exift. Vid. Prae- Iedt..i8. Bedford's Temple Mufick, ch. vi. Calmet, &c. The Hebrew language hardly admitted a tranfpoiition of words fuf- ficient for the Grecian mcafures ; and it appears evident, that though the language abounds in fimilar terminations, yet that rhime was not confidered as necelfary or ornamental in the He- brew verfe. in TO THE PBOPHET3. 357 in the fame poem, hut with a proprielr vrp.-jeh ap- pears from the effect to be always well adapted to the fubject. There is nothing incou&ftent "with the nature of infpiration. to foppofe that its fuggeltions might he conveyed in numbers. The -Prophets in the ordinary modes of prophefyingv wereacenitomed to compose their hymns to the found of fosse mufi- cal inurnment [t] ; and there could be but little difficulty in adapting their eifufions to a meafure which required probably no great restrictions in a language fo free and uncontrolled as the Hebrew. The Holy Spirit, likewife, while it quickened the invention of the Prophets, and £red their fancv, might enable them to obferve the ettabliihed ft3© of composition. The Prophets probably collected their own pro- phecies into their pre fen t form; though the au- thor of the lives of the Prophets, under the name of Dorothea, affirms m a very groundless afFertion, that none but David and Daniel did ; conceiving [tJ The Jews conceived that mufkk calmed the paiHons, and prepared the mind for the receptios of the prophetic irrSaen-ce. It is probable that the Prophets od thefe occafions did aoi ufttally perform themfelves oq the mafical iaitromeiitj, bt.it rather ac- companied the flrains of the mialljei -with their Toiee. Vid. i Sam, x. 5. 2 Kings iii. 15, 1 Chron. xxy. j. Louth's Prselect. Poet. 18. et feq, 2t has been the prae\ir.e- of all sations to adapt their religious vrorfhip to mufkk, which the fabulous accounts of antiquity derived from heaven. Ahiag. Hift. Acad, Heb. p. 23. And Smidius de Canto. Eeclef. V. et N. Teft. Mart. Giih, de Cama & Muflca Sac. R> David Kimchi in 1 Sam. x. 5, A a S thai 353 GEXERAL PREFACE that the fcribes of the temple received them as they were delivered, without order; but they were indis- putably compofed and published by thole Prophets whole names they federally bear [u]. As their ge- nuine productions, they were received into the Jewiih canon ; and were read in the Jewiih Synagogues after the perfecution of Antiochus Epiphanes, when the reading of the law was interdicted ; and continued lb to be, to the days jof our Saviour, from whole time they continued to be read in the Christian churches [x]. They are with great proprietv received into our churches as iiluftrating the grand fcheme of pro- phecy, and as replete with the molt excellent in- ftruction of every kind. The predictions which they contain, were principally accomplilhed in the ap- pearance of (Thrift. Some, however, which referred to the difperfion and fubfequent ftate of the Jews, as well as to the condition of other nations, ftill continue under our own eyes to be fulfilled, and will gradually receive their final and confummate ratifi- cation in the reftoration of the Jews, in the univer- fal eftabliihment of Chrift's kingdom [y], and in the [u] Ifaiah xxx. 8. Jerem. xxx. 2. Kabak. iii. 2, &c. [x] Afts xiii. 15. When the reading of the Law was re- ftorcd afur this perfecution, the prophetic books furnilhed dc„ t ached paflages for a fecond leflbn, felefted with reference to the fe.;tion read from the Law, and read by a different perfon. The prophecies were read only in the morning fervice, and never on the Monday or Thurfday, which days were appropriated to the Law er.clufnc'y. [y] A final reftoration of the Jews, and a fj iritual reign of Chriil to prevail after that ■ relic ration, arc fuppofed to be fore- told TO THE PROPHETS. 359 r the fecond advent of our Lord to " judge the world in righteouiheis." told in fcripture, and were believed fo to be from the earlieft ages of the chriltian church. Via. Deut. xxx. i — £. Ifaiah ii. 3 — 4, xi. xxx. iS — 26. xxxiii. 20 — 24. xlix. 18 — 26. Ii. 3 — 23. liv. 11 — 14. lx. lxv, 17 — 25. Hofea iii. c, Joel ii. and iii. Amosix. 11 — 15. Micahii. 12. iv. 3 — 13, vii. 11 — 20. Zepji. iii. 8 — 20. Jerem. iii. 16 — 18. xvi. 15. xxiii. 3 — S. xxx. 3 — 20. xxxi. 4 — 14, 35 — 40. xxxiii. 7 — 1 x. Ezek. xx. 40 — 44. x^viii. i$y 26. xxxiv. 26 — 29. xxxvi. xxxvii. xxxviii. and xxxix. Dan. vii. 26, 27. Zechar. v iii. 7, 8. Rev. xx. and xxi. &c. pafiim. Vid. alfo Matt. xx. 21. Afts i. 6. iii. 21. Barnab, Epift. c. xv. JuiHn Martyr Dialog, cum Tryphon. Part II. p. 315. Edit. Thirlb. Iren. L. V. c. xxxii — xxxvi. Tertul. cont. Marcion. L. III. Eyre's Obfervat. on Prophecy. Wot. ton Pref. to Clem. Epift. p. 15. The doftrine of the Millenium may have been carried to an abfurd and unwarranted excefs ; but fome of thefe prophecies, even if figuratively taken, arc feemingly too magnificent to be reft rifted to the efTefts of the firit advent of Chrift, and promife at leaft an effeftnal and tlhiverfal eftabliftiment of his fpiritual influence. A il 4 OF [ 360 ] _ OP THE BOOK of the PROPHET ISAIAH, ISAIAH, who was profeiTedly the author of this Book, and has been univerfally fo confidered, informs us, that he propheiied during the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, who fucceffively flourifhed between A. M. 3194 and 3305. He itiles himfelf the fon of Amoz, hy whom we are not to underftand the Prophet whofe name is fpelled Amos [a], and who was nearly coeval with Ifaiah himfelf. It has been fuppofed that Ifaiah was of the royal blood; and fome have main- tained that his father Amoz was the fon of Kins Joafh, and brother to Uzziah, or Azariah, King of Judah [bj. He certainly was of that tribe, and of [a] The Prophet's name is fpclt Dl&y ; that of the father pf Jfaiah, yiotf. Vid. Hieron. & Procop. in Efai. i. 1. Auguft. de Civit. Dei, Lib. xviii. 27. Cyril. Praef. Expof. in Amos. [b] R. Ifa. Abarb. Prasf. in Ifaiah. Seder Olam Zuta, & in Gemar. Codic. Mcgil. fol. 19, col. 11, Jofeph, Antiq. Lib. X. cap. ix. 4. noble OF THE BOOK OF ISAIAH. JOl noble birth ; and the Rabbins pretend that his father was a Prophet, which they collect from a general rule eftabliihed among them : that the fathers of the Prophets were themfelves Prophets when their names are mentioned in fcripture [c]. Isaiah was the firft of the four great Prophets, and is repreiented to have entered on the prophetic office in the laft year of Uzzialrs reign, about 75S years before Chrift [d]. Some have fuppofed that he did not live beyond the fifteenth or fixteenth year of Hezekiah's reign [e] ; in which cafe he prophe- iied during a fpace of about forty-five years. But others are of opinion, that he furvived Hezekiah, and that he was put to death in the reign of Manaf- ieth. There is, indeed, a Jewiili tradition, that he fuffered martyrdom by command of that tyrant, in the firft year of his reign, about 698 years before Chriit, being cruelly fawn afunder with a wooden {aw. On a fuppofition of the truth of this relation, we muft allow that he prophesied during a fpace of more than fixty years [f]. Several of the fathers have, indeed, borne tefti- [c] Hieron. in Efai. xxxvii. 2. Epiphan. de Vita & Mort- Prophet. & Clem. Alex. Strom. Lib. I. [d] He was nearly contemporary with Hofea, Joel, Amos, and Micah. [e] Aben-Ezra Com. in Ifa. i. 1. He certainly lived be- yond the fourteenth year of Hezekiah's reign. Vid. 2 Kings XX. I. [f] Jotham reigned fixteen years, Ahaz fix teen, and Heze- kiah twenty, nine. mony 36(2 OF THE BOOK OF ISAIAH. mony to the tradition [o] ; and St Paul is generalhr iuppoied to have referred to it in his epiitle to the Hebrews [n]. St. Juftin the martyr affirmed; that the Jews had eraled tiie diigracefi.il circumftance from the facred books ; and it is not improbable, that the hold fpirit of inve&ive, and the high character by which Ifaiah was diftinguifhed, might have irri- tated a jealous and revengeful monarch to this act of impious barbarity ; though the opprobrium of the deed muft be much aggravated, if St. Jerom be not miltaken in relating, that Manaffeth had received the daughter of Ifaiah in marriage [i]. It is added, alio, thatManaffeth endeavoured to juftify his cruel- ty, by pretending that he condemned the Prophet for faying, that " he had feen the Lord fitting upon a throne £k] ;"' contrary, as the tyrant affirmed, to wha- Is laid in Exodus, " there is no man ihall fee pie, and live [l] ;,? thus hypocritically attempting to veil his malice under an appearance of piety. How- ever this may have been, the ftory was certainly em- bellifhed with many fictitious circumftances ; as, that the Prophet was fawed aftmder in a cedar which had opened itfelf to receive him in his night ; and other [g] Tcrtul. Lib. de Patien. ch. xiv. Orig. in Matt. & in. Epift. ad Jul. African. & Horn, in Ifaia. Juftin. cum Tryphon, Chryfoft. ad Cyriac. Jerom Lib. V. in Efai. Auguft.de Civit.- Lib. XVIII. cap. xxiv. [h] Hcb. xi. 37. and Pcarce on this vcrfe, [1] Hieron. in Efai. iii. .[k] Chap. vi. 1. [l] Exod. xxxiii, 2of particulars Of THE BOOK OF ISAIAH. 3r>3 particulars fabricated in credulous reverence for his memory. Epiphanius and Dorotheus, who furnifh us with this account, add, that lie was buried near Jeruialem, under the oak Pvogel, near the royal fe- pulchre, on the river Siloe, at the fide of Mount Sion ; and that he remained in his tomb to their time ; contrary to what others report of his being carried away to Paneada, towards the fources of the Jordan ; and from thence to Conftautinople, in the thirty-fifth year of Theodolius the younger, A. D. 4jfc2. The name of Ifaiah is, as Vitringa has remarked, in fome meafure defcriptive of his character, fince it iignifies, " the falvatiou of Jehovah." He has al- ways been confidered as a Prophet of the higheft eminence [m] ; and looked up to as the brighteft luminary of the Jewiih church. He fpeaks of hkn- lelf as enlightened by vition ; and lie has been em- phatically ftiled the evangelical Prophet [n], fo co- pioully and clearly does he defcribe the Aleffiah, and characterize his kingdom : favoured as it were, with an intimate view of the Gofpel ftate, from the [m] Matt. iv. 14. Rom. x. 16. xxviii. 25. Matt. viii. 17. Luke iv. 17. Acts xxviii. 25. alfo Vitringa's Proleg. p. 10. 1 Kings xix. 20. xx. 1, 2. et feq. 2 Chron. xxxii. 20. St. Paul cites his work as part of the Law. 1 Cor. xiv. 21. [n] Hieron. Praef. in Efaiam, Epift. xvii. Auguft. de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVIII. c. xxix. Theod. Pra:f. in Efai. Holdeivs Paraphrafe of Ifaiah. St. jerom in his epiftle to Pope Damafus, fays what was figuratively true, that the feraphin who touched Ifaiah's lips with fire, conveyed to hira the New Teftament. Jfu. vi. 6, 7. 8 very 56'4 OF THE BOOK OF ISAIAH, very birth of our Saviour, " to be conceived of a virgin [o]," to that glorious and triumphant period, when every Gentile nation mall bring a clean offer- ing to the Lord, and " all fleih fhall come to wor- ship" before him [p]. The author of Ecclefiaftieus, in his fine and difcriminating encomium on the Pro- phets, fays of Ifaiah, that " he was great and faith- ful in his vifion ;" and that "in his time the (un went backward, and he lengthened the King's life. He law by an excellent fpirit what mould come to pafs at the laji [q]." It is certain that Ifaiah, in addition to his other prophetic privileges, was in- verted with the power of performing miracles [it]. Betides thofe that are afcribed to him in fcripture, tradition relates, that he fupplied the people befieged under Hezekiah with water from Siloam, while the enemy could not procure it [$]. It is remarkable, that the wife of Ifaiah is ftiled a prophetefs [t] ; and the Rabbins maintain, that ilie poneffed the gift of prophecy. He himfeif-appears to have been raifed up as a ftriking object of veneration among the Jews> $md to have regulated his whole conduct in fuhV [o] Chap. vii. 14. [p] Chap. Ixvi. 20, 23. [q] Ecclus xlviii. 22, 25. Vid. alfo, Calmet's Pref. and J/Owth's Pralett. 21. [r] 2 Kings xx. 11, 2 Chron. xxxii, 31 = [s] Hence, as fome have fuppofed, was ths origin of the Pool of Siloara. The word Siloam implies fenr. Vid. John ix. 7. Every tradition relative to thefe interefting charaders is worth recording. Tt] Chapk via. 3. ferviency OF THE BOOK OF ISAIAH. 365 ferviency to his facred appointment His Tons, like- wife, were for types [u], and figurative pledges of God's alliirances ; and their names [x] and actions were intended to awaken a religious attention in the peri'ons whom they were commiffioned to addrefs, and to initrucl:. Ifaiah was animated with the moli lively zeal for God's honour and fervice. He was employed chiefly to preach repentance to Judah; though he occaiionally uttered prophecies againft the ten tribes, which in his time conftituted the feparate kingdom of IiraeL In the prudent reigns of Uzziab. and Jotham, the kingdom of Judah flourillied; but in the time of Ahaz, Ifaiah had ample fubjecl for re- proach, as idolatry was eitablifhed, even in the tem- ple, and the kingdom nearly ruined by the impietv which the King had introduced and countenanced In the reign of Hezekiah, his endeavours to reform the people were more fuccefsful ; and fome piety prevailed, till the fedu&ion of Manaffeth completed the triumph of idolatry and fin. There are many hiftorical relations fcattered through this book, which iiluftrate the circumstances and occafions of the prophecies. The prophetical parts are fometimes conlidered under five divifions. The nrft part, which extends from the beginning to the thirteenth chapter, contains fivedifcourfes imme- diately addrefled to the Jews and Ephraimites ; whom [u] Ifaiah viih 18. [x] SJiear Jaihub ftgaifies, "-a remnant fhall return." Mahermalal-hafh-baz, implies, " run (wifely to the fpoil." VjfL ch. vii, 3. viii. i„ the oSG OF THE BOOK OF ISAIAH, the Prophet addrefles on various fubjects, ill various tones of exhortation and reproof. The fecond part, which extends to the twenty-fifth chapter, contains eight difcourfes, in which the fate of other nations, as of the Babylonians, Philiitines, JVIoabites, Syrians, and Egyptians, is defcrihed. The third part, which terminates with the thirty-tixth chapter, contains God's threats denounced againft the dilbbedient Jews, and enemies of the church, interfpcrfed with confo- iatory promifes to encourage thole who "might de- fence God's favour [y]. The fourth part, which begins at the fortieth chapter, where tiie prophetic itrain is refumed, defcribes in four difcourfes the manifeftation of the Meffiah, with many introductory and attendant circumftances. This divifion ends at the forty-ninth chapter. The fifth part, which con- cludes the prophecies, defcribes more particularly the appearance of our Saviour, and the character of his kingdom. The hiftorical part, which begins x\ ith the thirty-tixth, and terminates with- the thirty-ninth chapter [z], relates the remarkable events of thole times in which God employed the miniftry of Ifaiah. With refpecl to chronological arrangement, it [y] Ifaiah, as well as Nahum, Haggai, and Zechariah, were deemed confolatory Prophets. Vid. Abarb. Pratf. in Ifai. fol. 2. eol. 1. Lib. I. [z] The abrupt conclufion of the thirty. eighth chapter, leads us to fuppofe that thefe hiftorical chapters relating to Ile/.ekiah, were inferted from the Second Book of Kings, to illuftrate the preceding prophecies. Comp. Ifa. xxxvi — -xxxix. chapters, with 2 Kings xviii. 13. xx, 20. mil ft OF THE BOOK OF ISAIAH. 367 muft be obferved, that the- five firft chapters appear to relate to the time of Uzziah [a]. The virion de- scribed in the iixth chapter rauft have happened early in the reign of Jotham. The next fifteen chapters contain the prophecies delivered under Ahaz; and the prophecies which follow to the end of the book, were probably uttered under Hezekiah, Some writers, however, have conceived, that the chapters have been accidentally deranged ; and it is poflible that the prophecies were not delivered by the Prophet exactly in the order in which they now ftand. Others have attributed the diilocations, if tkere be any, to the men of Hezekiah, who are iaid to have collected thefe Prophecies [b]. When Ilaiah entered on the prophetic office, a darker fcene of things began to ariie. As idolatry predominated, and the captivity drew near, plainer declarations of God's future mercies were neceffarv to keep alive the expectations and confidence of the people. In treating of the captivities and deliver- ance of the Hebrew nation, the prophet is often led to coniider thole more important captivities and de- liverances which thefe temporal events forelhewed. Hence with promifes of the firft, he blends affurance* [a] Some think that they belong more properly to the reign ©f Ahaz. Vid. Taylor's Script. Divin. p. 328, but the defcrip- tion of the reign of an apoftate king would, perhaps, have been ft ill more forcible. Vid. 2 Kings xvi. 3. et feq. The defcrip- tions are not too ftrong for the time of Uzziah, whofe individual virtues could not entirely reform the kingdom, or reftore its jprofpcrity. Vid. Hieron. Com. in Efai. vi. [b] Jacob. Brandinglerus in Alan. Typ. Lib. Proph. V. T. Of 36S OF THE BOOK OF ISAIAH* of final reftoration. From the bondage of Ifrael, he likewife adverts to the bondage under which the Gentile world was held by ignorance and fin ; and hence he exhibits in connected representation, de- liverance from particular afflictions, and the general deliverance from fin and death. The prcl'ent con- cern is often forgotten in the contemplation of the diftant profpecl. The Prophet pafies with rapidity from the Srft to the fecond fubjecl:, without intima- tion of the change, or accurate difcrimination of their reipe&ive circumftances ; as for inftance, in the fifty-iecond chapter, where the Prophet, after fpeak- ing of the recovery from the Aflyrian oppreffion, fuddenly drops the idea of the prefent redemption, and breaks out into a rapturous defcription of the Gofpel falvation which it prefigured [cj. Among the prophecies of Ifaiah which deferve to be particularly noted for their eipecial perfpicuity and itriking accomplishment, are thofe in which he fore- told the captivities of Ifrael and Judah [d] ; and de- fcribed the ruin and defolation of Babylon [e], Tyre, and other nations. He fpoke of Cyrus by name, and of his conquefts, above £00 years before his birth [f], iu [c] Camp. Ifa. Hi. 7. with Rom. x. 15'. Ifa. xi. 10. with Horn. xv. 12. Vid. alfo, chap, xxxiv. xxxv. xl. xlix. Lowth on ch. Hi. 13. and Abarbinel, as quoted by Vitringa, on ch. xlix. 1. [d] Chap, xxxix. 6, 7. comp. with 2 Kings xxiv. 13. and Dan. i. 3. [e] Chap. xiii. 19-1-22. xiv. 22 — 24. xlvii. 7, 8. and Lowth Coni. & Uffer. Ann. ad A. M. 3347. ch. xxiii. [r] Chap. xliv. 28. xlv. 1 — 5. Jofcph. Antiq. Lib. XI. c. i* OF 1'HE BOOK OF ISAIAH. 56*9 m predictions which are fuppoled to have influenced tliat monarch to releaie the Jews from captivity [o], being probably lhewn to him by Daniel. Bnt it mult be repeated, that his prophecies concerning the! Metfiah fcem almoft to anticipate the Gofpel hiitory, lb clearly do thev forefhew the divine character of Chrift [h] ; his miracles [i] ; his peculiar qualities and virtues [k] ; his rejection [l], and fuffcrings for our fins [m]; his death, burial [x], and victory over death [o] ; and, laitly, his final glory [p], and the tllabhihinent, increaie [u], and perfection [r], of c. i. St. Jerom has remarked that Xenophon's hiftory is a good comment on the prophecies of Ifaiah. Vid. Hieron. ad Efaium xliv. [g] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XI. c. i. Ezra i. 2. [h] Chap. vii. 14. comp. with Matt. i. 18—23. an(i Luke i, 27— 35.. Chap. vi. ix. 6. xxxv. 4. xl. j, 9, 10. xlii. 6 — 3, Ixi 1. comp. with Luke iv. 18. lxii. 11. lxiii. 1 — 4. [ij Chap. xxxv. j, 6. [k] Chap. xi. 2, 3. xl. 11. xliii. 1 — 3. [l] Chap. vi. 9 — 12. comp. with Mark xiii. 14. Chap. vii. 14, ij. liii. 3. [m] Chap. 1. 6. liii. 4 — 11. The Ethiopian eunuch appears to have been made a piofelyte by St. Philip's explication of this chapter. Vid. A&s viii. 32. The whole of it is {o minutely defcriptive of Chrift's pafilon, that a famous Rabbi, iikewife, on reading it, was converted from Judaifm. — Who, indeed, can refill its evidence ? [x] Chap. liii. 8, 9. [o] Chap. xxv. 8. liii. 10, 12. [p] Chap. xlix. 7, 22, 23. Hi. 13 — ij. liii. 4, j, [oj Chap. ii. 2 — 4. ix. 7. xlii. 4. xlvi. 13. [r] Chap. ix. 2,, 7. xi. 4 — 10. xvi. 5. xx*x. i3 — 24. xxxii. I. xl. 4, J. xlix. 9 — 13. ii. 3-7-u. lii. 6 — 10.lv, 1 — 3. lix, 16 — 21. Ix. Ixi. 1 — 5. lxv, 2j. ; B b his 370 01 THt BOOK OF ISAIAH. his kingdom ; each fpecifically pointed out, and pourtrayecl with the moft itrikircg and difcriminating characters. It is impoffible, indeed, to reflect on thefe, and on the whole chain of his illuftrious prophecies, and not to be fenfible that they furniih the molt inconteitible evidence in fupport of chrif- tianity. The ftile of Ifaiah has been univerfally admired as the moft perfect model of the fublime ; it is diftin- guilhed for all the magnificence, and for all the fweet- nefs of the Hebrew language [s]. The variety of his images, and the animated warmth of his expref- fions, characterize him as unequalled in point of eloquence ; and if we were defirous of producing a fpecimen of the dignity and beauties of the fcrip- ture language, we Ihould immediately think of hav- ing recourfe to Ifaiah [t]. St. Jerom fpeaks of him as [s] See particularly the triumphant ode in chap. xiv. 4 — 27. which is inimitably beautiful. Vid. Lowth's Praele]. He appears to [d] Chap. xxi. 4 — ii. xxiv. 8 — 10. xxxii. 3, 4. xxxiv. 2 — 5. comp. with Ezek. xii. 13. and Jofeph. Antiq, Lib. XI. cap. x. Jer. xxxvi. 30, 31. [eJ Chap, xliii. 3 — 7. Abarbinel erroneoufly afferts that Jeremiah was carried into captivity with Jecon:ah, or Jehoia- chin ; contrary to the Prophet's own account, Vid. Abarb. in Ezek. [f] 2 Mace. ii. 1 — ^7. Eufeb. Prsep. Evang. Lib. IX. c.xxxix. Kieron. cunt, jovinian. Lib. II. Tertull, Adv. Cnoil. c. viii. have OF THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH. 37$ have been expofed to cruel and unjuit perfections from the Jews, and efpecially from thofe of his own village [e], during his whole life, on accounc of the zeal and fervor with which he ceniured their incor- rigible fins ; and he is fometimes provoked to break out into the moft feeling and bitter complaints of the treatment which he received [h]. The author of Ecclefiafticus [i], alluding to his fufferings, re- marks, " that they intreated him evil, who never- thelefs was a Prophet fanctified in his mother's womb." According to the account of St Jerom, he was ftoned to death at Tahpanhes [k], a royal city of Egypt, about oSo* years before the birth of Chrift : either by his own countrymen, as is gene- rally maintained, or by the Egyptians, to both of which people he had rendered himfelf obnoxious by the terrifying prophecies which he had uttered. The chronicle of Alexandria relates, that the Prophet had incenied the Egyptians by predicting that their idols mould be overthrown by an earthquake, when the Saviour of the earth ihould be born and placed in a manger. His prophecies, however, that are (till [g] Chap. xi. 21. Luke iv, 24, [h] Chap. xx. 7 — 18. [1] Ecclus. xlix. 17. [k] Jerem.xliii. 7, 9. Heb. xi. 37. Hieror. inch, xxxiit. 9, Tahpanhes is contracted to Hanes by Ifaiah, ch. xxx. 4. It is fippofed by many to have been the city which was afterwards called Daphns Pelufiaca?. Other tradition: relate, that he was thrown into a pit, and transfixed with darts. Vid. Gregent. Difput. cum Herban, Jud. Bb 4 ex tan f. S76 OF THE BOOK OT JEKF.-MIAH. extant concerning the conquefrs of Egypt bv Xcb chadnezzar, " the fervant of God,'* muft have been fumcient to excite the fears and hatred of thoio againft whom they were uttered. It was? added to this account which Ptolemv received, that Alexander the Great, vinting the tomb of Jeremiah, and hear- ing what he had predicted concerning his perfon. ordered that the Prophet's urn mould be removed to Alexandria, and buiit a magnificent monument to his memory [l]. This was foon rendered famous : and as a reverence for the Prophet's character en- circled it with imaginary influence, it became cele- brated as a place, of miracles [m]. Other accounts however, relate, that the Prophet returned unto his own country; and travellers are ftill ilieun a place in the neighbourhood of Jerufalem, where, as thev are told, Jeremiah compofed his prophecies ; and where Conftantine erefted a tomb to his memory. Jeremtah, who profeffes himfelf the author of theie prophecies [xj, employed Paruch as his ama- nuenlis in committing them to writing [o]. He ap- pears to have made at different times collections of what he had delivered. The firft feems to have [l] Abulfar. Hift. Orient. Dyir.ft. III. Jean Mofque Pre. Spirituel, ch. lxxvii. Raleigh's Hift. of the World, B. II. p. SSS- [m] Crocodiles and ferpents were fuppofed to be unable to live near it, and the duft of the place is now deemed a cure for the bite of the afp. Many other fimilar fictions were engendered by fuperftitious refpeel: for the Prophet's memory. [jj] Chap. i. I, 4, 6, 9. >:xv. 13. xxix. 1. xxx. 2. li. 6c. [e] Chap. iv. 32. xh\ I. bee a OF THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH. 577 been compofed in the fourth year of Jehoiakim. when the Prophet was exprefsly commanded by God to write upon a roll all the prophecies that he had uttered concerning Ifrael, Judah, and other nations [p]; this he did by means of Baruch. But this roll being burnt by Jehoiakim [q], another was written under Jeremiah's direction, with many additional particulars [it]. In the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the prophet appears to have collected into one book all the prophecies that he had delivered before the taking of J erufa.lem [s]. To this probably he after- wards added fuch farther revelations as he had occa- fionaily received during the government of Gedaliah, and during the refidence in Egypt, the account of which terminates with the fifty-fir it chapter. The fifty-fecond chapter, which is compiled from the five laft chapters of the fecond book of Kings [t], was probably not written by Jeremiah, as it contains in part a repetition of what the Prophet had before re- lated in the thirty-ninth and fortieth chapters of his book, and fome circumftances which, as it has been fnppofed, did not happen till after the death of Je- remiah : and it i-s evident from the intimation con- [p] Jerem. xxxvi. z. xxv. 13. [oj Chap, xxxvi. 23. The Jews inftituted an annual fail in commemoration of the burning of this roll, which is fl ill obferved in December, on the 29th day of the month Cifieu, Vid. Prid. Par. I. Eook I. [r] Chap, xxxvi. 32. [s] Chap. i. 3. [t] 2 Kings xxiv, 18 — 20. xxv. veyed #78 OF THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH. veyed in the-laft verfe (" thus far are the words of Jeremiah") that his book there terminates. The fifty- iecond chapter Avas therefore probably added by Ezra [u], as an exordium to the Lamentations. It is, however, a very ufeful appendage, as it illuf- trates the accomplilhment of Jeremiah's prophecies relative to the captivity and the fate of Zedekiah. The prophecies, as they are now placed, appear not to be arranged in the chronological order in, which they were delivered [x]. Whether they were originally lb compiled by Jeremiah, or Ezra ; or whether they have been accidentally tranfpofed, cannot now be determined. It is generally main- tained, that if we confult the dates of their publi- cation, they fhould be placed thus : In the reign of Joliah, the twelve firft chapters. In that of Jehoiakim, chapters xiii. — xx. xxi. ver. 1 1- — 14. xxii. xxiii. xxv. xxvi. xxxv. xxxvi.- xlv. — xlix. 1 — 33. ver. In that of Zedekiah, chap. xxi. 1 — 10. xxiv*' xxvii. — xxxiv. xxxvii. — xxxix. xlix. ver. 34 — •.. 39. 1. and li.- Under the -government of Gedaiiah, chap. xl. — xliv. Jeremiah does not feem to have received any revelations from God in the ihort intermediate reigns £u] Sixtus, Senenfis, without any juft rcafcn^ attributes, it to Baruch, Bib.- Lib. I. [xl Origen Epift. ad African. Hicron, Prsef. in Jerem. Bla- Tranflat.. of Jeremiah. OF THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH. 379 of Jehoahaz, the ion of Jofiah, or of Jeconiah, the fon of Jehoiakim. The prophecies which related to the Gentiles are contained in the forty-fixth and five following chap- ters, being placed at the end, as in fome meaiure unconnected with the others. But in fome copies of the Septuagint [v] thefe fix chapters follow im- mediately after the thirteenth verfe of the twenty- fifth chapter. Though the Israelites had been car- ried captive before Jeremiah began to propheiy, he oecafionally addreiTed the ten tribes, as fome re- mains of them were ftill left in Samaria. The prophecies of Jeremiah, of which the circum- ftantiai accomplifhment is often fpecified in the Old and New Teftament, are of a very diltinguifhed and illuftrious character. He foretold the fate of Zede- kiah [z] ; the Babyloniih captivity ; the precife time of its duration ; and the return of the Jews [a]. He defcribed the deftruclion of Babylon ; and the down- fal of many nations [bj; in predictions, of which the gradual and fuccefllve completion kept up the con- fidence of the Jews for the accomplifhment of thofe prophecies which he delivered relative to the Meffiah [i.*] As in the Vatican and Alexandrian. [z] Chap, xxxiv. 2 — 5. comp. with 2 Chron. xxxvi. 19. 2 Kings xxv. 5. and Jerem. lii. ir. [a} Chap. xxv. 11, 12. comp. with Dan. ix. 2. xxix. 10. Ezra i. ch. 1. Prid, Con. Ann. 518. Newton's eighth and eleventh DifTcrt. en the Prophecies. [b] Chap. xxv. 12. Vid. alfo, ch. ix. 26. xxv. 19 — 25V :-;:ii. 10 — iS. xivi, and following chapters. And Newton'^ Dlfferc. XII. and. 380 OF THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH. and his period [c]. He fovefhewed the miraculous conception of (Thrift [d] ; the virtue of his atone- ment ; the fpiritual character of his covenant ; and the inward efficacy of his laws [i.]. Jeremiah, contemplating thoie calamities which impended over his country, .represented in the molt defcriptivc terms, and under the moft exprefiive images, the rieitruction that the invading enemy ihould produce. He bewailed in pathetic expostulation, the fhameleis adulteries which had provoked the Almighty, after long forbearance, to threaten Judah with inevitable punifhment, at the time that falie prophets deluded the nation with the promifes of " allured peace," and when the people, in impious contempt of " the Lord's word," defied its accomplishment. Jere- miah intermingles with his prophecies fome hiftori- cal relations relative to his own conduct, and to the completion of thoie predictions which he had delivered. The reputation of Jeremiah had fpread among foreign nations, and his prophecies were de- iervedly celebrated in other countries [f]. Many heathen writers have likewife undefignedly borne teitiniony to the truth and accuracy of his prophetic and hiftorical defcriptions [g]. [c] Chap, xxiii. c, 6. xxk. 9. xTxl. 15. xxxiii. 14 — 18. xxxiii. 9. r&% Huet. Demon. Evan. Prop. VII. § 16. £d] Chap. ::xxi. 22. [f] Chap xxxi, 31 — 56. xxxi.u. 8. [f] Alex. PoiylTivt. iii Eofeb. Prap. Evan. Lib. IX. [g] Vid. Ik: :•. ..;-. X nophorl Cyropsd. Jofeph. cont. Apion, Lib. I. Cortipare particularly the accounts of the taking «pf Babylo ., i defcrTBed pr^plietically by Jeremiah in chap. li. ai)d hi^orically by Herodotus Lib. I, Til* OF THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH. 381 • The ftyle of Jeremiah, though not deficient either in eloquence or fublimity, has been confidered as inferior in both refpeels to that of Ifaiah [ji]. St. Jerom [i] objects a certain rufticity of expreifion to him ; but this it would not be eafy to point out. His images are, perhaps, lefs lofty, and his ex- preffions lefs dignified than thofe of fome others of the facred writers ; but the character of his work, which breathes a tendernefs of forrow calculated to awaken and intereit the milder affections, led him to reject the majeftic and declamatory tone in which the prophetic cenfures were fometimes conveyed. The holy zeal of the Prophet is, however, often excited to a very vigorous eloquence in inveighing againft the frontlefs audacity with which men gloried in their abominations [k]. The firft part of the book is chiefly poetical, and, indeed, near one half of the work is written in fome kind of meafure. The hiftorical part, towards the middle of the work, is written with much iimplicity of itile. The fix lait chapters, which are entirely in verfe, contain feverai [h] Lowth's Praeleft. 21. [1] Hieron. Pracf, and Com. in Jerem. Carpus de Repub, Hebr. Lib. III. cap. vii. [k] The Prophet is very animated in his admonitions againft idolatry, being willing to caution the people againft the tempta- tions which they would encounter in the captivity. It is remark- able, that the eleventh verfe of the tenth chapter, which contain? a pious fentiment which the Jews are direded to utter as a pro- feffion of their faith, is written in Chaldee ; that they might be furnilhed with the very words that they fhould anfwer to thofe who would feduce them. 2 predictions 3&2 OF THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH. predictions delivered in a high ftrain of fublimity. The descriptions of Jeremiah have all the vivid colourings that might be expected from a painter of contemporary fcenes. The hiftorical part has force characters of antiquity that ascertain the date of its composition. The months are reckoned by num- bers ; a mode which did not prevail after the cap- tivity, when they were diftinguimed by Chaldaic names. The eleventh verfe of the tenth chapter is written in Chaldee. There are likewife a few Chaldaic expreffions, which about the time of Jeremiah muft have begun to vitiate the Hebrew language. Jeremiah has been fometimes conlidered as an appointed Prophet of the Gentiles [l]. He cer- tainly delivered many prophecies relative to foreign nations. His name implies the exaltation of the Lord ; and his whole life was fpent in endeavouring to promote God's glory. His reputation was ib eoniiderable, that fome of the fathers [m] fancifully iuppofed that as his death is nowhere mentioned in fcripture, he was living in the time of Chrift, whom, as the Gofpel informs us, fome fuppofed to have been this Prophet [n]. They likewife applied to him and Elias what St. John myfterioufly fpeaks of two witneffes that mould prophefy 1260 days [o]; [l] Chap. i. 5 — 10. [m] Vidorin. in .Apoc, cap, xi. 3. PJures Spud Hilar, in Matt. can. xx. [nJ Matth. xvi. 14. [o] Rev, xi, 3, which or xn e book Of jfremiah. 383 wJiich.fupcvuitious fictions ferve, at leaft, to prove the traditional reverence that was entertained for the memory of the Prophet ; who long afterwards con- tinued to be venerated in the Romifh church as one of the greateft faints that had flouriihed under the old covenant: as having lived not only with the general ftri&nefs of a Prophet, but, as was believed, in a Hate of celibacy [p] ; and as having terminated his righteous miniftry by martyrdom. [p] Chap. xvi. 2. How far the restriction here enjoined wai of a typical, or temporary and local nature, is uncertain. The Chaldee Paraphrafe fuppofes the Prophet to have had childre«.f Vid. Com. on Jerem, xxxvii. 12. OP [ 38i ] OF THE BOOK op the LAMENTATIONS of JEREMIAH. THE Jews denominate this book Echah [a], from the firft word of the text ; or fomelimes they call it Kinnoth [b], which implies tears, allud- ing to the mournful character of the work, of which one would conceive, fays Lowth, " that every letter was written with a tear, every word the found of a broken heart [c]." The Book was coinpofed by Jeremiah, as he informs us in the title, and as the unvaried tradition of the church declares. The ftile, indeed, itfelf, indicates the fame hand which compofed the preceding book. Upon what occafion thefe Lamentations were produced, cannot be pofi- tively determined. In the fecond book of Chroni- cles [d], it is faid, that " Jeremiah lamented for [a] rD'K, Echah How. [e] r.ivp, Kinno:h, -?;y;:i, Lamentations, cr tears, [c] Gregor. Naziar.z. Orat. xii, [dJ 2 Chron. xxxv. 25. Jcfiah-" THE LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMIAH. 385 Jofiah;" and Jofephus [e], and other writers [f], fuppofe that the work which we now poflefs was written upon the occafion of that monarch's death : maintaining that the calamities which only three months after, attended the depolition of Jehoahaz were fo considerable as to correfpond with the de- icription of the Prophet, though they are not mi- nutely detailed in iacred hiltory. The generality of the commentators, are however of a different opinion; and, indeed, Jeremiah here bewails the defolation of Jerufalem; the captivity of Judah; the miferies of famine ; and the cefiation of all religious worfhip, in terms fo forcible and pathetic, that they appear rather applicable to fome period after the deftru6tion of Jerufalem [g], when, agreeably to his own pre- dictions, every circumftance of complicated diftrefs overihadowed Judrea [h]. But upon wliatever oc- cafion thefe Lamentations were compofed, they are evidently defcriptive of paft events, and cannot be confidered as prophetic elegies. Some Jewifh writers imagined, that this was the book which Jeremiah dictated to Baruch, and which [e] Jofeph. Antiq. Jud. Lib. X. c. vi. [fJ Hicron. in Lament. R. Sclom. Lament, ch. iv. 20. Michaelis note in Prseleft. 23. Utter, Annal. A. M. 3394. & Lam. ch. v. 7. which Michaelis connders as a complaint more juft and reafonable in the time of Jofiah than in that of Zcdekiah. [g] Chap. i. 1, 3, 6, 12, 18. ii. 2, 5, 6, 7, 16. iv. 6, 10, 22. v. 6, 18. [k] Chap, xx, 4. may allude to the fate of Zedekiah. • C c was 386 THE LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMIAH. was cut and burnt by Jehoiakim [r]. But there is no foundation for this opinion, for the book dictated to Baruch contained many prophetic threats [k] againft various nations of which there are no traces in this book. In the Greek, Arabic, and Vulgate verfions of this book, there is a fpurious argument, which is not in the Hebrew, nor in the Chaldee pa- raphrafe, any more than in the verhon of St. Jerom. who followed the Hebrew. It may be thus tranf- lated : " It came to pais, that after Ifrael had been carried away captive, and J erufalem became defolate, the Propiiet Jeremiah fat weeping, and bewailed J e- rufaiem with this lamentation, and bitterly weeping and mourning, laid as follows/' This was probably added by the Greek tranilators, in lieu of the fifty- fecond chapter of Jeremiah's prophecies, which they rejected from this to the preceding book [l]. The Lamentations were certainly annexed originally to the prophecies of Jeremiah, and were admitted with them together into the Hebrew canon as one book. The modern Jews, however, place this work in their copies among other fmaller tracts, fuch as Ruth, and Canticles, &c. at the end of the Pentateuch : having deranged the books of fcripture from the order which they held in Ezra's collection. With reipect io the plan of this work, it is com- pofed after the manner of funeral odes, though with- out any ver, ial difpolition of its fubjec>. It £i] jcre-m. xxxvi. 4 — 25. [k] Chap, xxxvi. 2. [l] Huet, Prop. IV. cap, xiv> appears THE lAMENTATIOKS OF JEREMIAH; 337 appears to contain the genuine effufions of real grief; in which the author, occupied by his forrow, attends not to exact connection between the different rhap- fodies, but pours out whatever prefents itfelf. He dwells upon the fame ideas, and amplifies the fame thoughts, by new exprefiions and figures, as is natural to a mind intent on fubjects of affliction.. There is, however, no wild incoherency in the con- texture of the book ; the tranfitions are eafy and elegant ; but it is in fact a collection of diitinct fen- tences, probably uttered at different times, upon the fame iubjecl:, which are properly intitled La- mentations, The work is divided into five parts: in the firft, fecond, and fourth chapters, the Prophet fpeaks in his own perfon ; or by a very elegant and intereft- ing perfonilication, introduces Jerufalem asfpeaking [m]. In the third chapter, a chorus of the Jews fpeaks as one perfon, like the Coryphaeus of the Greeks. In the fifth, which forms a kind of epi- logue to the work, the whole nation of the captive Jews is introduced in one body, as pouring out com- plaints and fupplications to God. Each of thefe five parts is diitributed into twenty-two periods or ftanzas, in correfpondence with the number of the Hebrew- letters. In the three firft chapters, thefe periods are [mJ In the firft verfej Jerufalem is defcribed as fitting pen- five and folitary, as Judaea was afterwards reprefented on the coins of Vefpafian and Titus. Sitting was a natural ppjture of forrow ; and the picture of fbdentary affliction was familiar to the Jews. Vid. Job ii. 13. Pfa. exxxvii. 1. Ezek. iii. i£ = Addifon's DiiT, on Medals. Cc 2 triplets. 388 THE LAMENTATIONS 07 JEREMIAH. triplets, or confift of three lines [n]. In the four firft chapters, the initial letter of each period follows the order of the alphabet ; and in the third chapter, each verie of the fame ftanza begins with the fame letter [o]. In the fourth chapter, all the ftanzas are evidently diftiches [p], as alio in the fifth, which U not acroftick. The intention of this acroftick, or alphabetic arrangement, was to affift the memory in retaining fentences not much connected [q], and the lame method was adopted, and is even ftill ufed by tlie Syrians, Arabians, and Perfians [r]. It is re- markable alio, that though the verfes of the fifth chapter are ihort, yet thole of the other chapters feein to be nearly half as long again as thole which Ofually occur in Hebrew poetry; and the Prophet appears to have chofen this meafure as more flowing, and accommodated to the err'uiions of furrow, and [n] There is, however, in each of the two firft chapters, orre tetracolon, or ftanza of four verfes, in cap, i. ?, in cap. ii. p. p>. [o] The third chapter has 66 verfes in our tranflation, be- caufe each of the twenty-two periods is divided into three verfes, according to the initial letters. It is remarkable, that in the fecond, third, and fourth chapters, the initial letter a is placed before v, contrary to the order obferved in the alphabet, and in the firft chapter, as well as in the acroftick Pfalms. [p] The ftanza o, as now read, cannot be divided into two or three verfes. [q] The Lamentations appear to have been fung in pub, lick fervice. Vid. Lowth's Pradcct. zi. and Preface to Ifaiahr £ 31- [r | Affemani Bibliothec, Oriental vol, iii. p. 65, 180, 188, perhaps THE LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMIAH, 389 perhaps as more agreeable to the nature of funeral dirges [s]. Tins poem affords the moft elegant variety of affecting images that ever probably were collected into lb lmall a compals [r]. The fcenes of afflic- tion, the circumftances of diftrefs, are painted with iuch beautiful combination, that we contemplate every where the moft affecting picture of delblation and miiery. The Prophet reiterates his complaints in the molt pathetic ltile; and aggravates his forrow with a boldnefs and force of deicription that corres- pond with the magnitude and religious importance of the calamities dil'played to view. In the initructive Itrain of an infpired writer, he reminds his country- men of the grievous rebellions that had provoked the Lord to " abhor his i ancillary ;" confeifes that it was of God's mercies that they v/er& not utterly confumed ; and points out the fources of evil in the iniquities of their falfe prophets and priefts. He then with indignant irony threatens Edomwithdeftruetion for rejoicing over the miferies of Judcea ; opens a coniblatory proipect of deliverance and future pro- tection to Zion ; and concludes with an affecting addreis to God, to " conffder the reproach" of his people, and to renew their profperity. It is worthy to be obferved, that Jeremiah in en- deavouring to promote reugnation in his countrymen, [s] The Lamentations which occafionally occur, appear all to be compofed of this long meafure, which may be fuppofed to have been properly the elegiac meafure of the Hebrews. [t] Lowth's Prsleft, 22. C c 3 reprefents 390 THE LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMIAH. repreients his own deportment under afflictions, in terms which have a prophetic call, fo ftrikingly are they descriptive of the patience and conduct of our Saviour under his fuffermgs [u]. The Prophet, in- deed, in the meek endurance of unmerited persecu- tion, was an illuftrious type of Chrift. Jeremiah is reprefented in fome titles to have been the author of the 137th Pfalm [x] ; as like wife to have compofed the 65th [y] in conjunction with Ezekiel; but probably neither of them were the pro- duction of his pen. The author of the fecond book- of Maccabees [z], fpeaks of lbme recorded instruc- tions of the Prophet, which are no longer extant. In the Vatican library are i'ome compositions iq Greek, attributed to the Prophet, containing Spu- rious letters from iiaruch and Abdemelech to the Prophet, and fuppofititious anSwers from him. [u] Chap. iii. i — 30. [x] This is afcribed to him in foitic Latin copies, as it for- merly was in fome Greek manutcripts ; but it feems to have beer, written by fome captive at Babylon. . [y] The titles in the Greek and Latin copies which affign this Pfalm to Jeremiah and Ezekiel, are of no authority. Th.1 Pfalm was probably written by David, upon the occafion of fome graciT ous rain after a drought, or perhaps by Haggai, or fome Prophet after the return from the captivity. Vid. Calmet, [zj 2 Mace, ii. 1—7. 0? [ 391 J OF THE BOOK of the PROPHET EZEKIEL, EZEKIEL, who was the third of the great Prophets, was the fori of Buzi, a descendant of Aaron, of the tribe of Levi, that is, of the facer- dotal race. He is faid to have been a native o f Sarera [a], and to have been carried away captive to Babylon with Jehoiachin, King of Judah, A. M. 3406. He fettled, or was placed, with many others of his captive countrymen, on the banks of the Chebar [a], a river of Mesopotamia ; where he was favoured with the divine revelations which are de- scribed in this book. He is fuppofed to have pro- phefied daring a period of twenty-one years. He appears to have been mercifully railed up to ani- mate the defpondence of his contemporaries in [a] Pfeudo-Ep:phan. in Vit. Prophet. [b] Called by Ptolemy and Strabo, Chaboras, or Aboras ; and by Pliny, Cobaris, Lib. I. cap. xxvi. It flows into the eaft iide of the Euphrates at Circefium, or CavclKraifh, almoft 200 rniles to the north of Babylon. C c 4 their 39% OF THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL. their fufferings and afflictions ; and to allure them that they were' deceived in fuppofing, according to the representations of falie prophets, that their countrymen who remained in Judaea were in hap- pier circumftances than themlelves ; and with this view he defcr^bes that melancholy icene of calami- ties which was about to arife in Judaea; and thence he proceeds to predict the univerfal apoftacy of the Jews, and the total deitruction of their city and temple ; adverting alio, occafionally, to thole pu- nifhments which awaited their enemies ; and inter- fperfing affurances of the final accomplifhment of God's purpofe, with prophetic declarations of the advent of the Meffiah, and with promifes of the final reftoration of the Jews. The name of Ezekiel [c] was happily exprefiive of that infpired confidence and fortitude which he difplayed, as well in Supporting the adverfe circum- itances of the captivity, as in cenfuring the fins and idolatrous propenfities of his countrymen. He be- gan to deliver his prophecies about eight or ten years after Daniel, in the fifth year of Jehoiachin"s captivity ; and as fome have fuppofed, in the thir- tieth year of his age [d]. The [c] Ezekiel, ^tfpirV. Fortitudo Dei vel Apprehenfio Dei. [d] Ezek. i. i. Hieron. in loc. &c. Ufher, Prideaux, and others, reckon the 30 years here fpoken of, as well as the 40 days or years mentioned in chap. iv. 6. from the time of the covenant made by Jofiah in the 1 8th year of his reign. Vid. 2 Kings xxiii. 3. according to which computation this thirtieth year correfponds with A. M. 3410, and the fifth year of Jehoi. achin's captivity. Other chronologifts, however, conceive it to 3 OF THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL. 3.93 The divine inftructions were firit revealed to him an a glorious viiion, in which he beheld a representa- tion, or as he himielf reverently expreiles it, w the appearance of the likeneis of the glory of the Lord," attended by his cherubims Symbolically pourtrayecL 11 The word of the Lord came exprefsly" unto him, and he received his commiflion by a voice, which was followed by a forcible influence of the l'pirit, and by awful directions for his conduct [e]. Lie appears to have executed his high trulr with great fidelity. The author of Ecclefiaiticus [f] fays of him, that " he directed them who went right ;" which may be con- fidered as a merited encomium on the induftry with which he endeavoured to initruel; and guide his coun- trvmen to righteouihefs. He is reported by fome writers to have prefided in the government of the tribes of Gad and Dan in Affvria : and among other miracles to have puniihed them for idolatry by a fearful deitrue~tion produced by ferpents. In ad- dition to thefe popular traditions it is reported, that his countrymen were fo incenfed by his reproaches as to put him to a cruel death [g]. In the time of Epiphanius it was generally believed that his remains were depofited in the fame fepulchre with thofe of to be the thirtieth year of Ezekiel's age ; or the thirtieth year of Nebupolafier's reign ; and others the thirtieth year from the ju- bilee. Vid. Ufher ad A. M. 3409. Prid. An. A. C. 594.. ticaliger Can. Ifag. p. 28. Ezekiel ufually dates his prophecies from the sera of his appointment to the prophetic office. [e] Chap. i. ii. and iii. [f] Ecclus xlix. 9. & Arnald. !g] Hieron* in Ezech. xii. Shem 394f OF THE BOOK OF EZEK1LL. Shem and Arphaxad, which was fituated between the river Euphrates and that of Chaboras, in the land of Mau.r ; and it was much retorted to [h], not only by the Jews, but alio by the Medes and Perfians : who reverenced the tomb of the Prophet with a i'uper- ftitious devotion. The authenticity of Ezekiel's book will admit of no queftion. He reprefents himfelf as the author in the beginning and other parts of it, and juitly af~ fumes the character and pretentions of a Prophet [1]; as fuch he has been univerfally confidered. A few writers, indeed, of very inconfiderable authority, have fancied, from the firit word of the iiebrew text, which they coniider as a connexive particle, that "what we poflels of Ezekiel is but the fragment of a larger work. But there is no Ihadow of foun- dation for this conjecture, fince it was very cuitomary to begin a difcourfe in that language with the particle vau [k], which we properly translate, " Now it came to pais." It has been aflferted, likewife, on Talmudical authority, that certain Rabbins delibe- rated concerning the rejection of this book from the [h] Benjamin Tudela relates, that a magnificent roof was built to it by jechoniah and 30,000 Jews, and decorated with images of Jechoniah, Ezekiel, and otheis ; likewife, that a fynagogue and library were creeled there, in which was de- pofned a manufcript of Ezekiel's prophecies that was read on the day of expiation. The pretended tomb of Ezekiel is ft 111 {hewn about fifteen leagues from Bagdad. [1] Chap. i. 1. ii. 2, 5. Clem, ift Epif. Cor. c. 17. [k] Jonah, i. 1. and the beginning of mod of the hiftorical books of failure, aifo Calmat Preface fur Ezechiel, canon, OF THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL. 3.95 canon, on account of ibme paflagcs in it which they con dived t i oe contradictory to the principles of the M< faie Law • ey had any luch intention, t . . wer .inced of their miitake, and gave ii|( ie lefi : the Jews, indeed, did not fuller the bools, 0) at leait the beginning of it, to be read by any who had not attained their thirtieth year [:.i j ; and restrictions were impofed upon comment tators who might be diipofed to write upon it [n], St. J from hath remarked, certainly with great truth, that the vifions of Ezekiel are ibmetimes very myllerious, and of difficult interpretation, and that they may be reckoned among the things in fcripture which are " hard to be underitood [o]." Ezekiel himfelf, well aware of the myfterious character of thole representations which he beheld in vifion, and of the neceffary obfcurity which mult attend the der fcription of them to others, humbly reprefented to [l] Comp. Ezek. xviii. 20. with Exod. xxxiv. 7. The peo- ple .whom Ezekiel addreiTed, prefumptuoufly complained that they were punifhed for the fins of their forefathers, though, in truth, they had merited their captivity by perfifting in evil. God therefore, very confidently with his former declaration.", threatens by Ezekiel to make fuch diltinftion between the righteous and the wicked, that each man fhould be fenfibie of having deferred his fufferings. And he allures the people, with efpcial reference to eternal punifhment, that " the foul that finned fhould die;" and that " the fon fnould not bear the ini- quity of the father;" that each fliould be refponfible only for fcis own conduct. [m] Calmet's Die!:. Herbclot. Bibliot. Orient, p. 942. [»] Cunreus de Rep. Heb. 17. (oj Hierou, Prol, in EzqqIi, and Prol. Gal. God $9& OT THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL. God that the people accufed him of fpeaking darkly " in parables [p}." It appears to have been God's deiign to cheer the drooping fpirits of his people, but only by communicating fuch encouragement as was coniiftent with a ftate of punifhment, and cal- culated by indiftinft intimations, to keep alive a watchful and fubmifiive confidence. For this reafon, perhaps, were Ezekiei's prophecies, which were re- vealed amidft the gloom of captivity, deiignedly ob- icure in their nature ; but though nryiterious in thcm- felves, they are related by the Prophet in a plain and hiitorical maimer. lie feems to have been defi- rous of conveying the itrong impreffions which he received, as accurately as they were capable of be- ing described. The repref entations which Ezekiel beheld in vifion, are capable of a very interefting and initructive illuf- tration from other parts of fcripture : as may be feen in the commentaries of various writers who have iuin dertaken to explain their alluiive character, and the figurative directions which the Prophet received in them with relation to his own condu6t, were very coniiftent with the dignity of his character, and the deiign of his miffion. Some of thefe directions wera given, indeed, only by way of metaphorical inftruc- tion ; for when Ezekiel is commanded to " eat the roll of prophecy/' we readily underftand that he is enjoined only to receive, and thoroughly to digeft its contents [q] ; and when he profeiTes to have com- [p] Ezek. xx. 49. [q] Vid. Rev. x. 8— 10. plied of the book of ezekiel. 397- plied with the command, we perceive that he fpeaks only of a tranfa&ion in viiion. With reipect to ibme other relations of this nature contained in Ezckiels book [r], whether we fuppoic them to be deicrip- tive of real or imaginary events, they are very rc- concileable with divine intention in the employ- ment of the Prophet. On a fuppoiition that they were real, we may reaibnably fuppofe a miraculous afliftance to have been afforded when necefiary ; and if we coniider them as imaginary, they might be represented equally as emblematical forevvarnings revealed to the Prophet [s]. The Book of Ezekiel is fometimes diftributed by the following analyiis, under different heads. After the three lirit chapters, in which the appointment of the Prophet is dcfcribed, the wickednefs and impending punifhment of the Jews, efpccially of thole remaining in Judasa, are reprefented under different parables and vifions, to the twenty-fourth chapter, inclulive. From thence to the thirty-fecond chapter, the Prophet turns his attention to tlioie nations who had unfeelingly triumphed over the Jews in their affliction : predicting that deitruction ©f the Ammonites, Moabitcs, and Philiitines, which [r] In the general preface to the Prophets, Ezekiel is fup- pofed to have actually removed his houlhoid fluff, as thus pro- phefying by a fign ; and this fuppofition feems to be authorized by the account. Vid. Ezek. xii. 7. and Waterland in Ezek. So, alfo, when deprived of his wife, he certainly refrained from the cuilomary (hew of grief, as a fign of the unprecedented and inexpreflible forrow under which the Jews (hould pine away on the deitruction of their temple'. Vid. chap, xxiv, 16. et feq. [s] Chap, iv. and v, Nebu- SgS Ot THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL, Nebuchadnezzar effected ; and particularly, he fore- tels the ruin and defolation of Tyre [t] and of Si- don ; the fall of Egypt [i], and the bale degeneracy of its future people, in a manner fo forcible, in terms lb accurately and minutely defcriptive of their feve- ral fates and prefent condition, that nothing can be more interefting than "to trace the accomphihinent ef thefe prophecies in the accounts which are fur- mfhed by hiftorians and travellers. From the thirty-fecond to the fortieth chapter, Ezekiel inveighs againft the hypocrify and murmur- ing fpirit of his captive countrymen: encouraging them to resignation by promifes of deliverance [x], and by intimations of Spiritual redemption [y]. In the two iaft chapters of this divilion, under the pro- nhied victories to be obtained over Gog and Magog [z], he undoubtedly predicts the final return of the Jews £t] Ezek. xxvi. xxvii. and xxviii. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. Xo cap. xi. cont. Apion, Lib. I. Newton's Xlth Differt. on Pro- phecy. Prid. Con. An. 573. Shaw's Travels, p. 330. Maun- drell, p. 48, 49. Volney, vol. ii. ch. xxix. Bruce's Travel?; Introd. p. 59. [u] Chap. xxix. and xxx. Newton's Differt. XII. and every Hftory, and every account of Egypt. Herodotus particularly relates the accomplifhment of thofe prophecies which Jeremiah and Ezekiel uttered concerning Hophra, king of Egypr. Vid» Jerem. xliv. 30. and Herod. Lib. II. Hophra is called Apries by Herodotus, who, fays n:m, nuai defiined to misfortune* See alfo the TelVimonies of Megafthencs and Beroius in Newton* [x] Chap, x xxvi. 11. xxxvii. iz, 14, 21. [yJ Chap, xxxiv. 4. xxiii. et feq. xxxvii. 24. et feq. [z] Rev. xx. 7, S. Some conceive that thefe prophecies of Esekiel related to the perfecution of Antiochus Epiphanes* Calmct CF THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL* 3§§ Jev.s from their difperhon, in the latter days; ^ith an obicunty, however, that can be difperled only by the event The nine laft chapters of this book furuifli the defcription of a very remarkable virion of a new temple and city; of a new religion and polity, under the particulars of which rsiaadowed out the eitabhlh- jnent of a future universal church [aj. Jofeplius lays, Calmet applies them to Cambyfes. Gog is, however, generally fuppofed to reprefent the Turks ; who derive their origin irom. the Tartars, a race of the Scythians, who were the defendants of Magog, the fon of Japhet. Vid. Gen. x. 2. The word Gog appears to be applied to the people, and M.3gog to the land. We learn from Pliny, that ScythopoJis and HieropoJis wereal.vays called Magog, after they were taken by the Scythians. The other Prophets fpeak of fome future enemy of the Jews and church under a flmilar defcription ; but in what manner this magnificent prophecy is to receive its completion time only can explain, Vid. Lo .h in loc. jerem. xxvii. and xxx. Joel iii. Micah v« Rev. xx. Mede conceives that the Gog and Magog mentioned in the Revelation or St. John, prellgnify fome enemies d liferent from thole foretold under thefe names by Ezekiel ; and that St. John's prophecies apply to fome unconverted heathens to appear in oppofition to the church towards the concluhon of the Millenium, Vid. de Gog et Mag. Conjed. Mode's Works, vol. II. B. iii, Rennell's Geographical Syftem, p. iii. [a] This bbfeure vifibn of Ezekiel is generally fuppofed to Contain the defcription of a tempiej cci responding in its ftruc- ture and dimensions with that of Solomon. The Prophet by preferring to the captives this delineation of what had been -'• the defire of their eyes," reminded them of the lefs which they had Differed from their unrightebamefs j and furnilhed them with a model upon which the temple might again rife izorn its rubs ; as it did, with left magnificence, indeed, in the time 1 400 OF THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL. fays, that Ezekiel ieft two books concerning the cap- tivity [b] ; and the author of the Synopiis attributed to Athanafius, fuppofes that one book has been loft; but as the nine iait chapters of Ezekiel conititute in Ibme mealure a diltinct work, probably Joiephus might coulider them as forming a fecond book. It deferves to be remarked, that we are informed by Joiephus, that the prophecy in which Ezekiel [c] foretold that " Zedekiah fhould not fee Babylon, though he mould die there," was judged by that monarch to be inconfiftent with that of Jeremiah, who predicted that " Zedekiah mould behold the King of Babylon, and go to Babylon [d]." But both were exactly fulfilled ; for Zedekiah did fee the King of Babylon at Riblah, and then being de- prived of his eyes, he was carried to Babylon, and died there [e]. From this account it appears, that EzekieFs prophecies were tranfmitted to Jerufalem, as we know that Jeremiah's were lent to his country- men in captivity [f] ; an intercourfe being kept up, efpecially for the conveyance of prophetic inftruc- tions : for ought that might confole miiery, or time of Zerubbabel. Under the particulars detailed by Ezekiel, however, we often difcover the ceconomy of a fpiritual temple, which fhould again be filled " with the glory of the Lord coming from the Eaft." Vid. chap, xliii. i — 4. Revelation. Villal. pandus, Capellus, and Commentators at large. [b] Jofcph. Antiq. Lib. X. c. vi. [c] Ezek. xii. 13. [d] Jercm. xxxiv. 3. [e] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. X. cap. x. Vid. Lib. XI. c. x. [f] Jerem, xxix, 1. and Hieron. in Ezech, xii. 7. awaken OF THE BOOK OF EZFKIEL. 401 awaken repentance ; and it was probably on the ■■'jroimd of this communication, that the Talmudiits o iuppoied that the prophecies of Ezekiel were ar- ranged into their prefent form, and placed in the canon by the elders of the great fynagogue [g]. The lble of this Prophet is characterized by Biihop Lowth as bold, vehement, and tragical [h]; as often worked up to a kind of tremendous dignity. His book is highly parabolical, and abounds with figures and metaphorical expreffions. Ezekiel may be compared to the Grecian .-Efchylus ; he difplays a rough but majeftic dignity ; an unpolilhed though noble ihnplicity; inferior, perhaps, in originality and elegance, to others of the Prophets ; but unequalled in that force and grandeur for which he is particu- larly celebrated. He fometimes emphatically and indignantly repeats his fentiments ; fully dilates his pictures ; and defcribes the adulterous manner of his countrymen under the itrongeit and molt exag- gerated reprefentations that the licence of the eaftern ftile would admit. The middle part of the book is in fome meafure poetical ; and contains even fome [g] Bava Bathra, c, i. and in Gemar. Ifidor. Orig. Lib. VLj ,cap. ii. [h] The Ezekiel who is quoted by Clemens Alexandrians and Eufebius as the tragic poet of the Jew*j was a different perfon from the Prophet. Some fuppofe that he was one of ihe fevent.y tranilators under Ptolemy. His work, in which he defcribes the Exodus of the Jews under the conduct ©f Mofes, is ftill extant. Vid. Clem. Alex. Strom. Lib. I. p. 344. Eufeb. Praep. Evang. Lib. IX. c. 28. Fabric, Bib. Graec. Lib. II. c. xix. D d perfect 402 OF THE BOOK OF EZliKIEI. perfecl elegies [i] ; though his thoughts are in ge- neral too irregular and uncontrolled to be chained down to rule, or fettered by language. Some perfons have conceived that Pythagoras imbibed his knowledge concerning the Mofaic Law from Ezekiel ; and that the Prophet was the fame perl'on with Nazaratus k], under whom Pythagoras is related to have ltudied [l]. Pythagoras certainly did vifit Labylon. and according to many calcula- tions he was contemporary with the Prophet. [i] Chap, xxvii. and xxviii. 12 — 19. [k] Called Zabratus, by Porphyry in Vita Pythagor. and Zaratus, by Plutarch. Vid. Huet. Prop. IV. [l] Clem. Alex. Strom. Lib. I. Some conceive, that Py- thagoras might have been born about nine years after Ezekiel's departure for the captivity ; and might have vifited Babylon very young, and fo have converfed with Ezekiel when the Prophet was in years. OF I 403 ] OF THE BOOK of the PROPHET DANIEL. THAT Daniel collected thefe prophecies into their preterit form is evident, iince in various parts of the Book he fpeaks of himfelf in the cha- racter of its author [a] ; and lias been fo confidered in all ages of the church. Some Jewiih writers, indeed, upon a miftaken notion that prophecies were never committed to writing out of the limits of Ju- daea, pretend that the book was compofed by the men of the great fynagogue, as alio thole of Efther, and Ezekiel [b]. It was, however, unqueftionably admitted into the Hebrew canon as the authentic production of Daniel ; and it is cited as his work in the New Teftament [c]. [a] Dan. viii. i, 2, 27. ix. 2. x. 2. xii, 5", &c, [b] Bava Bathra, cap. in Gemara, and Rabbins. Jofephus allures us, that Daniel himfelf committed his prophecies to writing. Vid. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. X. cap. xii. [cj Matt. xxiv. 15. Mark xiii. 14, 404 OF THE BOOK OF DAXIEL. In the time of Jofephus, Daniel was efteemed as one of the greateft of the Prophets [d] ; but fmce the period in which the hiitorian flouriihed, the Jews. in order to invalidate the evidence that refults from the Prophet's writings in fupport of Chriftianlty, have, on the authority of a few doclors, agreed to clafs him among the Hagiographi [e] ; which de- cifion, however, does not, upon their own rules, affect his pretentions, to he considered as an infpired writer. The reafon which, among others, the Jews produce to authorize this degradation is, that Daniej. lived in the Babylonifii court, in a ftile of magnifi- cence inconfiiteht with the reftricHons obferved by the Prophets [f] ; and though the divine will was revealed to him by an angel, yet as the Prophet himfelf called this revelation a dream, the Jewim writers, by fome unintelligible diftinclion, confider this as a mode of revelation inferior to anv of thofe fpecified in God's addrefs to Moles [g]. Without [d] Jofeph. Lib. X. cap. xi. "xii. [e] Maimon. More Nevoch, Par. II. cap. iv. v. Hieron. Przef. in Dan. Theod. cap. ult. Dan. Yet Daniel is reckoned among the Prophets in fome Talmudical boqks. Vid. Me- gilla, c. ii. Jacchiades in Dan. i. 17. In the fecond century, Aquila and Theodotion placed him among the Prophets in ffieir Greek tranflanons, agreeably to his rank in the Septuagint ; aftd Melito found him reckoned in the fame clafs. Vid. Eufeb. Hift; Ecclef. Lib. IV. c. xxvi. Epiphan. Ha;res. 29. Nazar. note 7. De Pond. & Menf. n. 4. 162. Chand. Vimlic. ch. i. [fJ Grot. Prjef. ad Com. in Efai. Huet. Demon. Evan-. Prop. IV. cap. xiv. Kimchi. Praef. in Pfalm. [gJ Numb. xii. 6. Maimon. More Nevoch, Par. II. c. xlv. ftaying OF THE BOOK OF DANIEL. 40£ ftayitig to refute thefe abfurd fancies, it is only ne- ceflary to obferve, that the exact accomplishment of Daniel's many remarkable predictions would have fufficiently eftablifhed his right to the character of a Prophet, even if he had not been exprefsly dil- tinguimed as fuch by the facred writers [h] ; and by Chrift himielf, who fpoke agreeably to the opinion of the Jews, his contemporaries, in teftimony to the prophetic character of Daniel [i]. Daniel was a defcendant of the Kings of Judah. He is related to have been born at upper Bethoron [k], which was in the territory of Ephraim. He was carried away captive to Babylon in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, A. M. 3398 ; probably in the eighteenth or twentieth year of his age [l] ; and on account of his birth, wil'dom, and accomplifhments [m], was lelec~ted to ftand in the prefence of Nebu- chadnezzar ; fo that in him and his companions was fulfilled that prophecy in which Ifaiah declared to Hezekiah that " his iilue fhould be eunuchs in the palace of the King of Babylon [n]." By [h] Heb. xi. 33, 34. 2 Pet. i. 21. [1] Matt. xxiv. 15. Mark xiii. 14: [k] Jofti. xvi. c. Sixtus Senenfis affirms, after Epiphanius, that Daniel was born in Batheber near Jerufalem. Vid. Bib. Sac. Lib. I. p. 40. Michaelis confiders this as an improbable tra- dition, Vid. Michael. Prsef. p. 8. [l] Aben-Ezra. [m] Dan. i. 3, 4. Ezek. xiv. 14. xxv. 3. xxviii. 3. [n] 2 Kings xx. 18. Ifa. xxxix. 6, 7. The word eunuch formerly was a general title for the royal attendants. The D d 3 fame 406 OF THE BOOK OF DANIEL. By the fignal proofs which he gave of an excel- lent fpirit, and by the many extraordinary qualities which he poffefled, Daniel conciliated the favour of the Perfian monarchs ; he was elevated to high rank [o], and entrufted with great power. In the vicif- iitudes of his life, as in the virtues which he dis- played, he has been thought to have refembled Jo- feph. Like him he lived amidft the corruption of a great court ; and preferred an unmaken attachment to his religion, in a fituation embarraffed with dif- ficulties, and furrounded by temptations. He pub- lickly profeft'ed God s fervice, in defiance of every danger; and predicted his fearful judgments to the very face of intemperate and powerful tyrants [p], It may be collected from the penfive caft of his fame phrafe in the original is applied to Potiphar. Vid. Gen. xxxix. I. Vid. alfo Ads viii. 27. [o] The name of Daniel implied, " the man of our defires.'* Others fay it fignified, the judgment of God, or according to Michaelis, God is my judge. (Vid. Mich. Prasf. in Dan. and Geirus in Dan.) The name given to him in the Babylonifh court was Beltefhazzar, a name which, as Nebuchadnezzar re- marked in his decree, was derived from the name of his God (Bel). Vid. Dan. iv. 8. It was ufual among the Babylonians fo to denominate perfons after the names of their deities, as Ne- buchadnezzar from Nebo, and Evil-Merodach from Merodach. Vid. Ifa. xlvi. 1. Jerem. 1. 2. It was alfo cuftomary among the caftern nations, for the Kings to diftinguiih their favourites by new names when they conferred on them new dignities ; and the Mogul ftill adheres to the cuftom. Gen. xli. 45. Either ii. 7. Scaliger de Emend. Temp. Lib. V. and VI. Cellar, ad Cur- uium, Lib. VI. c. 6. [r] Chap, iv, 20 — 28. v. 18 — 29. writings, OF THE BOOK OF DANIEL. 407 writings, that he was of that melancholy difpofition which might be expected to characterize the iervants of the true God amidft icenes of idolatry. He ex- perienced through his whole life very fignal arid miraculous proofs of divine favour ; and was looked up to by the Perfians, as well as by his own country- men, as an oracle of inlpired wifdom [q] ; he con" tributed much to fpread a knowledge of God among the Gentile nations. Many writers have fuppofed that Zoroafter the celebrated founder or reformer of the Magian religion, was a difciple of Daniel, fmce Zoroafter was evidently well acquainted with many revealed truths, and borrowed from the facred Wri* tings many particulars for the improvement of his religious inftitutes [r]. Daxtel appears to have attained a great age, as he prophefied during the whole period of the cap- tivity. He probably, however, did not long fur- vive his laft virion concerning the fucceffion of the Kings of Perfia, which he beheld in the third year of Cyrus [s], A. M. 3470, when the Prophet muft have reached his ninetieth year. As Daniel dates this vifion by a Perfian aera, it was apparently re- vealed to him in Perfia ; and though fome have af- ferted that he returned from the captivity with Ezra, [oj Dan. v. ii. Ezek. xiv. 14. xxviii. 3. Daniel was very young when Ezekiel bore this teftimony to his praife. [r] Wendelin. DifT. de Pythagor. Tetr. [s] Chap. x. 1. xii. 13. Michael, in Jerem, DilT. Prelim. §. 21. D d 4 and 408 OF THE BOOK OI DANI£L. and took upon him the government of Syria [t], it is probable that he was too old to avail himielf of the decree of Cyrus [u], however he might have been acceiTary in obtaining it ; and that1 agreeably to the received opinion, he died in Perfia. Epiphanius and others affirm that he died at Babylon, and they fay that his fepulchre was there to be feen many ages after in the royal cave [x]. But it is more probable, according to the common tradition, that he was buried at Sula, or Suihan, wliere certainly he fometimes refided [y], and perhaps as governor of Perfia ; and where he was favoured with fome of his laft vifions. Benjamin Tudela, indeed, informs us [z], that he was mewn the reputed tomb of [t] Herbelot. Biblioth. Oriental, p. 285. [u] The Daniel mentioned by Nchemiah, ch. x. 6, was a different perfon from the Prophet, being probably the fame with Daniel, the fon of Ithamar, fpoken of by Ezra, ch. viii. 2. The Belefis, likewife, mentioned by Diodorus, differed from the Pro- phet in his period and character. [x] Epiphan. Sixt. Senens. Bib. Sac. Lib. I. p. 2. It appears, however, from other writers, that the fepulchre of the Perfian Kings was near Perfepolis. Vid. Diodor. Sic. Reland. in Pa- tell. Lib. III. p. 635. Strabo relates, that Cyrus was buried at Perfepolis, and that his monument was there feen by Alexander. Vid.. Strab. Lib. XV. p. 750. His fucceffors were perhaps buried at Sufa. [y] Chap. viii. 2, 27. Shufhan was the capital of Elam, or perfia, properly fo called. It was taken from Aftyages, King of Media, by Nebuchadnezzar, according to the prophecy of Jeremiah. Vid. Jerem. >:lix. 34. It afterwards revolted to Cyrus. Vid. Xcnoph. Cyropxd. Lib. V. [z] Benjam. Itinef, p. 78. et Abulfar, Hifl8 Oriental; Dy- Darnell OF- THE BOOK OF DANIEL. 403 Daniel, at Tufter (the ancient Snfa) on the Tigris- ; where like wife, as we are allured by Jofephus, was a magnificent edifice in the form of a tower, which was laid to have been built by Daniel [a], and which ferved as a fepulchre for the Perfian and Parth'ian Kings. This, in the time of the hiftorian, retained its perfect beauty, and furnifhed a fine fpecimeh of the Prophet's fkill in architecture. The Book of Daniel contains a very interesting mixture of hiftory and prophecies ; the former being introduced as far as was neceilary to defcribe the conduct of the Prophet, and to fhew the defign and occafion of his predictions. The fix firft chapters are chiefly hiftorical ; though, indeed, the feconcl chapter contains the prophetic interpretation of Da- niel's dream concerning the kingdoms which were fucceffively to illuftrate the power of that God, who removeth and fetteth up Kings, as ieemeth good to him. The four hiftorical chapters which fucceed, relate, the miraculous deliverance of Daniel's companions from the furnace [b] ; the remarkable punifhment of Nebuchadnezzar's arrogance [c] ; the impiety and portended [a] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. X. cap. xii. The prefent copies of Jofephus, indeed, place this edifice in Ecbatana, but probably the hiftorian originally wrote Sufa ; for St. Jerom, who proftffes to copy his account, reads Sufa, which was in the Babylonifh. empire. Vid. Hieron. Com. in Dan. viii. 2. [b] In this miracle was literally accornplilhed a prophetic aflurance of Ifaiah. Vid. xliii. 2. [c] It has been ufually fuppofed, that the punifhmerit in- fli&ed on Nebuchadnezzar was that fpecies of madnefs v is 410 OF THE BOOK OF DANIEL. portended fate of Belfhazzar [d] ; and the divine in- terpofition for the protection of Daniel in the lion's is called Lycanthropy. This diforder operates fo ftrongly on thofe affected by it, as to make them fancy themfelves wolves, and run howling and tearing every thing in extravagant imitation of thofe animals. Vid. Sennerti Inititut. Medic. 2. Par. III. < 7. and § 2. c. iv. Aertius, Lib. VI. c. 2. Mercur. Val. Left. VI. 20. Paufan. in Arcad. Ovid. Metam. Lib. 1. 1. 232, et feq. But it mould feem from the account, that the divine threats were fulfilled in a more exaft and literal fenfe ; and that Nebuchadnezzar was actually driven from fociety, till his affec- tions were brutalized, and his appearance changed. Scaliger - conceives, that this Metamorphofis is alluded to by Abydenus, who remarks, on the authority of the Chaldxan writers, that Nebuchadnezzar, after having uttered a prophecy relative to the deftruftion of the Babyloniih empire by Cyrus, di/appeared. Vid. Eufeb. Pra?p. Evan. Lib. IX. c. xli. Scaliger's notes upon the ancient fragments in the appendix to his work, de Emendatione Temporum. [d] The death of Belfhazzar is related by Xenophon nearly in the fame manner as it is defcribed by Daniel. Vid. Hiftor. Lib. VII. and many other particulars recorded in this book are repiefented in a fimilar way by heathen hiftorians, as St. Jerom has fhewn by many xeferences. The eaftern Kings had, how- ever, many titles afTumed on various occafions ; they are there- fore fometimes fpoken of in this book, as in other parts of fcrip- ture, under titles different from thofe by which they are diflin- guifhed in prophane hiftory ; and probably the facred writers chofe to characterize wicked princes by thofe obnoxious appel- lations which they afTumed in honour of their idols ; as in the inflance of Evil-Merodach and Belfhazzar. Belfhazzar was pro- bably the fon of Evil-Merudach, by Nitocris, and the grand- fon of Nebuchadnezzar, whofe fon (or defcendant) he is called in fcripture. Vid. Bifhop Hallifax's fecond fcrmon on Prophecy. den OF THE BOOK OF DANIEL. 411 den [e]. All thefe accounts are written with a lpiril and animation highly intereiting ; we ieem to be pre- lent at the icenes defcribed ; and the whole work is enriched with the molt exalted fentiments of piety ; and with the fineit atteftations to the praile and glory of God. Daniel flourifhed during the fucceffive reigns of feveral Babyloniih and Median Kings, to the con- quell of Babylon by Cyrus; in the beginning of whole reign he probably died. The events recorded in the fixth chapter were coeval with Darius the Mede ; but in the feventh and eighth chapters Da- niel returns to an earlier period, to relate the vifions which he beheld in the three firft years of Belmaz- zar's" reign [f] ; and thole which follow in the four laft chapters were revealed to him in the reign of Darius. The fix laft chapters of this book are compofed of prophecies delivered at different times, all of which are, however, in fome degree connected as parts of one great fcheme. They extend through many ages; and furnifh the molt ftriking defcription of the fall of fucceffive kingdoms, which were to be intro- ductory to the eftabliihment of the Mefhah's reign. They characterize in defcriptive terms the four great monarchies of the world to be lucceeded by " that [e] Daniel's deliverance from the den of lions, as well as that of his friends from the flames, was long celebrated among the Jews. Vid. i Mace. ii. 59, 60. and 3 Mace. vi. 3, 4, 5. [f] Michael, Prsef, in ch, vii, Hiercn, Com. in ch. vii. kingdom 412 OF THE BOOK OF TjAXltL. kingdom which fhould not be deftroved [g].* They foreihew the power and deftruction of Anti- chriit, in predictions repeated and extended by St. John [h] ; and conclude with a diitincl aflurance of a general refurre&ion to a life of everiafting fhamej or everiafting glory [i]. The prophecies of Daniel were in many inftances fo exa6tlyaccomplilhed, that thofeperfons who would have otherwise been unable to refift the evidence which they furnifhed in iupport of our religion, have not fcrupled to affirm, that they muft have been written fubiequently to thofe occurrences which they fo faithfully defcribe [k]. But this groundlefs and unfupported aifertion of Porphyry, wlio in the third century wrote againft chriftianity, ferves but to eftabliih the character of Daniel as a great and en- lightened Prophet; and Porphyry, by conferring and proving from the belt hiftorians, that all which is in> [g] Dan. vii. 13, 14, 27. [h] Dan. paffim, and Bifhop Andrews's Refpon. ad Bellarm. Apol. p. 334. & Revel. The prophecies concerning the Anti- chrift are ufually applied to the Papal power prefigured by Antio- chus Epiphanes. Vid. chap. viii. 23 — 25. xi. 36 — 45. [1] Dan. xii. 2, 31. [k] The firft chapter has by fome been thought to have been written after the time of Daniel, becaufe it fpeaks of the Prophet in the third perfon, and fays that he continued to the firft year of Cyrus, (that is, to his firft year over the Medes- and Perfians, and to the third over Babylon) ; but thefe words might well proceed from Daniel, as he lived beyond that pe- riod. The conclufive verfe of the fixth chapter might equally have proceeded from Daniel, fpeaking of hirafelf in the third perfon. eluded OF THE BOOK OF PANIEL. 413 eluded in the eleventh chapter of Daniel relative to the Kings of the north, and of the fouth, of Syria, and of Egypt, was truly and in every particular, acted and done in the order there related : has un- designedly contributed to the reputation of thofe prophecies of w hich he attempted to deitroy the au? t.honty; for it is contrary to all historical teftimony, and contrary to all probability, to fuppofe that the Jews would have admitted into the canon of their facred writ, a book which contained pretended pro- phecies of what had already happened [l]. And indeed jt is impoffible that thefe prophecies fliould have been written after the reign of Antiochus Epi- phanes,fince they were probably tranflated into Greek near an hundred years before the period in which he lived ; and that tranflation was in the pofleffion of the Egyptians, who entertained no kindnefs for the Jews, or their religion [m], Thofe prophecies alfo, which [l] The names of the mufical inftruments mentioned in this book, have fome refemblance to thofe of Grecian inftruments ; •but as colonies of Ionians, Dorians, and JEolians, were fettled in Afia, long before the time of Daniel, technical names might eafily be communicated from them to the Babylonians ; or rather, as the Eaft was the fource of mufick, and the words appear to be of eaflem derivation, they might be originally derived from the Eaft to the Greeks. Vid. Marmam. Chron. Sax. 13. and Chan- dler's Vindic. of Dcf. chap. i. feft. 2. [m] St. Jerom informs us, that the Septuagint verlion of Daniel was rejected by the church, for that of Theodotion. Vid. Hieron. on Dan. iv. 8. The Septuagint was admitted into Origen's Hexapla, and from his time fell into difcredit. Before it was in general ufe, the Latin verfion was probably made 41 4 OF THE BOOK OF DANIEL. which foretold the victories and dominion of Alex- ander [V], were mewn to that conqueror himfelf by Jaddua, the high-prieit, as we learn from Jol'ephus [o], and the Jews thereupon obtained an exemption from tribute every fabbatical year, and the free ex- ercife of their laws. Many ©ther prophecies in the book have likewife been fulfilled fince the time of Porphyry [r]. Dan i el not only predicted future events with lin- gular precision, but likewife accurately defined the time in which they fhould be fulfilled, as was re- markably exemplified in that illuitrious prophecy of the feventy weeks [q], in which he prefixed the period made from it, and it was cited by the earlieft writers. It was therefore probably made with the reft of the prophetical books, which we know were all tranflated before the time of Euergetes II. Vid. Prol. in EcgIus. Eufeb. Dem. Evan. Lib. VIII. p. 381. Clemens. Roman. Epift. I. § 34. Juftin Martyr, Dialog, cum Trypho, edit. Oxon, p. 87, 241. Chand. Vind. ch. i. feci:. 3. [nJ Chap. viii. 5. xi. 3. Lloyd's Letter to Sherlock. Chand- ler's Vindic. chap. ii. feci;. 1. Bayle's Did. Art. Macedo. note o. [o] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. X. cap. xii. Lib. XI. cap. viii, Newton's Dilf. vol. ii. DifT. xv. p. 36. [p] Porphyry was born at Tyre, A. D. 233. Some of his objeclions apply to the fpurious parts of Daniel. St. Jerom agrees with him in applying the eleventh chapter as far as the twenty -firft verfe to the time of Antiochus Epiphanes. The Prophet afterwards fpeaks of the Romans and of the Anti, chrift,. as he does of the latter in the eighth and twelfth chap- ters. Vid. Biftiop Chandler's Vindic. of Def. and S. Chand- ler's Vindication of the Antiquity and Authority of Daniel's, Prophecies. [qJ Chap. ix. 24 — 27. For computations concerning the c-x.-vt accomplishment of this amazing prophecy, vid. Ufler. Annal, OF THE BOOK OF DANIEL. 415 period for " bringing in everlafting righteoufnefs by the Meffiah," as well as in fome other myfterious predictions which probably mark out the time or duration of the power of Antichrift [r], and as ibme fuppofe, for the commencement of the milleniun?y or univerfal reign of faints, which they conceive to be foretold ; for the explanation of which we mult wait the event. From the fourth verfe of the fecond chapter, to the end of the ieventh chapter of this book, Daniel wrote his hiftory originally in the Chaldaic, or Syriac language [s] ; and, indeed, the greateft part of the book bears marks of the Chaldaic idiom ; as might well be expected from an author who had fo long redded in Chaldaea. As all the hiftorical par- ticulars which concerned the Babylonim nation were probably recorded in the annals of that go- vernment [t] ; Daniel might poffibly have extracted fome paflages, as, perhaps, the decree of Nebu- chadnezzar [u], from thofe chronicles ; and no Annal. V. T. ad Ann. Per. Jul. 4260. Prid. Connect. Arm. A. C. 458. Lloyd's Chron. Tables, Num. 3, 4. Bafnage's Diff. on Seventy Weeks. Calmer DifTert. fur les Sept. Sem. Petav. de Doft. Temp. Lib. XII. &c. [r] Chap. vii. 25. viii. 14. xii. 7. Lowth, &c. [s] Thefe were originally the fame language. Vid. 2 Kings xviii. 26. Ezra iv. 7. The language of Babylon was the pure Chaldee ; the modern Syriac is the language which was ufed by the Chriftians of Comagena and other provinces bordering upon Syria, when that was the language of the country. [t] Either ii. 23. vi. i, [u] Chap, iv, teftimony £'-16 OF THE BOOK OF DA XI EL. •teftimony could bo more honourable, or with mors propriety prefixed to his prophecies. As the Jews alio in their difperfion had feparately intermixed with the natives of Chaldaea, they all underftood the language of the country ; and mult have re- ceived lb authentic a document of Daniel's fidelity with particular rcfpect. The remaining chapters [x] which were written in Hebrew, contain pro- phetic vifions, which were revealed only to the Pro- phet,, and related principally to the church and people of God. The ftile of Daniel is clear, concife, fimple, and hiftorical, though the vifions which he defcribes were in themfelves of a figurative and emblematical cha- racter. They pourtrayed future circumitances to his imagination under repre.fentations ftrikingly fynat bolical of thole particulars which they forefliewed ; and they who advert to the enligns and armorial devices of thofe nations of whom Daniel prophefies, will difcover a very appofite propriety in the hiero? glyphical images which the Prophet felects [y]. Daniel's name, like that of many others of the {x} The firft chapter of the book,, and the three firft verfes of the fecond chapter, were written in Hebrew, as they form a kind, of introduction to the book. [v] Chap. viii. Thus the ram was the royal enfign of the Perfians, and was to be feen on the pillars of Pcrfepolis. Vid. Ammian. Marcel. Lib. XIX. Sir J. Chardin's Travels. The goat alfo was the emblem or arms of Maccdon. Vid. Juftin. Hift. Lib. VIII. Medc's Works, B. III. p. 654, 712. Jo- feph. Archseol. Lib. X. cap. x. and Newton on Dan. ch. iv. ' Par. I. facrcd Or THE BOOK OF DAZTIEL 417 iacred writers, has been borrowed to countenance fplirious books, befides the apocryphal additions in our Bibles. A book in titled the Virions of Daniel fz], was condemned as ipurious- and impious by the decree of Gratian [a]. In this book Daniel is laid to have foretold how many years each Emperor ihould live, as well as the events of his reign, and the future circumltances of the Saracens. Some fuppofititious magical writings were likewife attri- buted to the Prophet [b]. But Daniel, though well verfed in the Chaldcean phiiofophy, as Mofes was " learned in all the wilolom of Egypt,'' yet dilclaimed all magical arts, and relied on the true God. [z] Oftunii Somnialia. [a] Decrer. Part II. Cauff. 27. Qua-ft. 1. c. xvi. and Athan. Synop. Lib. II. [bJ Jof. Alb. Fabrici. Codic. Pfeudepig. V. Teft. p. 1130. E e General 418 General preface to the GENERAL PREFACE TO THE TWELVE MINOR PROPHETS. THE writings of the twelve Minor Prophet* were in tiie Hebrew canon comprized in one book, which was called by St. Stephen, the Book of the Prophets [a]. By whom they were fo compiled is uncertain ; probably, however, they were collected together in that form by Ezra, or by fome member of the Great Synagogue [b] ; but certainly above 200 years before the birth of Chrift ; for the author of the Book of Ecclefiafticus, who wrote about A. M, 37/0, celebrates the memorial of the Twelve Pro- phets under one general encomium : as of thofe who had comforted G od's people, and confirmed their con- fidence in God's promifes of a Redeemer [c]. The order in which the books are placed, is not the fame " [a] Acts vii. 42. comp. with Amos v. 25. [b] Abarb. Prctf. in Ifaiah. Bava Bathra, Sec. [c] Ecclus xlix. 10. and Arnald on the Place. Chandler's Der'cn. ch. i. feci. 2. p. 44. It is called the book of the twelve Prophets, by Cyprian. Epilt. 59.. 4 in Twelve fin xor prophets. 419' in the Septuagint as in the Hebrew [d]. According to the latter, they ftand as in our tranflation ; but in the Greek the feries is altered as to the fix firft, to the following arrangement : Hofea, Amos, Micah, Joel, Obadiah, Jonah. This change, however, is of no coniequence, fince neither in the original, nor in the Septuagint, are they placed with exact regard to the time in which their facred authors refpeelively flourimed. The order in which they mould ftand, if chrono- logically arranged, is by Blair and others, fuppofed to be as follows : Jonah, Amos, Hofea, Micah, Na- hum, Joel, Zephaniah, Habakkuk, Obadiah, Haggai> Zechariah, Malachi. And this order will be found to foe generally confiftent with the periods to which the Prophets will be refpeclively affigned in the following work ; except in the inftance of Joel, who probably flourimed rather earlier than he is placed by thefe chronologers. The precife period of this Prophet, however, cannot be afcertained, and fome difputes might be maintained concerning the priority of others alio when they were nearly contemporaries, as Amos and Hofea ; and when the firft prophecies of a later Prophet were delivered at the fame time with, or previoufly to fome of thole of a Prophet, who was called earlier to the facred office. The following fcheme, however, in which alfo the greater Prophets will be introduced, may enable the reader more accu- rately to comprehend the actual and relative periods in which they feverally prophefied. [d] Hieron, Prsf. in Lib. Reg. in n Proph, & in Joel. Ee 2 The 420 GENERAL PREFACE TO THE The Prophets in their fuppofed Order of Time, arranged accord, ing to Blair's Tables [e], with but little Variation. Beioie Chnli. Jonah, Amos, Hofea, Ifaiah, Joel, Micah, Nahum, Zcphaniah, Jeremiah, Habakkuk Between 856 and 784. Between 810 and 785. Between 810 and 7-25. Between 810 and 698. Between 810 and 660, or later. Between 758 and 699. Between 720 and 698. Between 640 and 609. Between 6'2B and 586. Between 612 and 598. Daniel, Or-ariiah. EzekieV ■ Zechariah, Malachi, Between 606 and 534. Kium of Judah. Jehu, and Jehoahaz, accord- ing to Lloyd ; but Joail; and Jeroboamthe Second accoidint: to Blair. Uzziah, ch. i. 1. Uzziah, Jotliain, Ahaz, the third year of Hezckiah. Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, chap. i. 1. and perhaps Mantiileth. Uzziah, or pollibly Ma- lutlfetli. Jotham, Ahaz, and Ileze kiah, ch. i. 1. Probably towards the cloi'e of Hezekiah's reifen. In the reign of Julia li, ch i. 1. rn the thirteenth' year o Joliali. Probably in the reign ol Jehoiakim. Kuibs ol Ilrael. Jeroboam the Second, ch. i. 1. Jeroboam the Second, chap. i. 1. Pekah and Hofea. During all the Captivity. Between 538 and 583. Between 595 About 520 i.,.M.;. From 520 to 18, or longer Between. 436 and 397. Between the taking" of Jeru- falembyNehuchadnezzai and the deilruction of the nites by him. During part of "the Cap tivtty. U'tcr the return from Ba by ion. [kJ Biihop Newcome's verfion of Minor Propbettff i'refuce, p. 43, TWELVE MINOR PROPHETS. 421 The Twelve Minor Prophets were lb called, not in reipecl; to any fuppofed inferiority in their writings as to matter or itile, but in reference to the brevity of their works. The fhortnefs, indeed, of thcie pro- phecies ieems to have been one reafon for joining them together [f] ; by which means the volume of their contents was fwelled to a greatnefs in ibme de- gree correfpondent to their importance [g] . Neither were they later in point of time than the greater Prophets ; fome having preceded Ifaiah; and many of them having lived before Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel ; and by the Greeks, indeed, they are placed before them. It is a traditionary account, that of theie Prophets, fuch as do not furnifh us with the date of their prophecies mult be fuppofed to have flourithed as contemporaries with, o? immediately after the Prophets, that precede them in the order of the books; but this is not invariably true ; and is built upon an erroneous fuppofition, that the books are chronologically arranged in the Hebrew manu- fcripts. Some of the Prophets were probably born in the territory of Ifrael, but molt in that of Judah. They .appear, however, to have been ibmetimes commii- [f] Beth Ifrae! relates, that Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, added their writings to thofe of the Minor Prophets, and com- pofed them into one volume, left they mould perifh. Vid. Bav.i Bathra, c. i. [g] Hieron. Proleg. 12 Prophet. Thcodor, in'Prooem. Aug. ■de Civi-t. Lib. XVIII. c. xxvii. E e 3 fioned 423 GENERAL PREFACE TO THE fioned to preach reciprocally againft thoie tribes among whom- they were not born. Thes e twelve Prophets furnifli us in fcattered parts with a lively fketch of many particulars relative to thehiitory of Judah and of Ifrael ; as well as of Other kingdoms; they defcribe in prophetic anticipa- tion, but with hiftorical exaclnefs, the fate of Baby- lon, Of Nineveh, of Tyre, of Sidon, and of Da- mascus. The three laft Prophets efpecially, illuftrate many circumftances at a period when the hiftorical pages of fcripture are clofed, and when prophane authors are entirely wanting. They defcribe under the moft ftriking reprefentations, the advent and character of the Meffiah and his kingdom, and en* deavour by the moft admirable inttruetion to excite thofe religious fentiments which would facilitate the reception of the Gofpel. The Jewifh Prophets of the moft eminent rank at firft flouriihed but as fingle lights, and followed each other in individual fuc- ceffion ; for during the continuance of the theocracy, and perhaps fome time after, the Jews were in pof- feffion of the power of confulting God by means of the Urim and Thummim. But when the calamities of the captivity approached ; during the continuance of that affliction, and amidft the melancholy fcenes which the people contemplated on their return to defolate cities and to a wafted land ; during thefe dark periods, the Prophets were, by God's mercies, railed up in greater numbers for the confolation of his people ; who were encouraged to look forward to that joyful deliverance by the Meffiah which now ■approached. TWELVE MINOR PROPHET5. 423 approached. The light of infpiration was collected into one blaze previous to its fufpenfion; and it ferved to keep alive the expectations of the Jews during the awful interval which prevailed between the expiration of prophecy and its grand completion in the advent of Chriit. If in the writings of the later Minor Prophets, we ibmetimes are perplexed at feeing the light of revelation but faintly glim- mering through the obfcurity of their ftile ; we mult recollect, that they lived when the language of the Jews began to vitiate and decline ; that there are no contemporary records to illuftrate their prophe- cies ; that the brevity of their works prevents us from collating the author with himfelf ; and that we who read them in Englifh, judge of them through the imperfect medium of a tranllation [h]. [h] " Hebrcei bibunt Fontcs, Gragi Rivos, Latini Paludes." as Picus Mirandula obfcrved. F. c 4 or [ 424 ] OF THE BOOK of the PROPHET HOSEA. \OSEA has been fuppofed to have been the nioft ancient of the Twelve Minor Prophets ; and, indeed, by fomc writers he is reprefcnted as having preceded all the prophets [a J, fmce he flourifhed about the middle of the reign of Jero- boam the Second, thefonof Joafh, King of Ifrael, ancj towards the commencement of that of Uzziah [b], who [a] Hieron. in Ofee. Bafil in Ifai. i. Rufin, &c. In the fecond verfc of the fir ft chapter it is faid, " the beginning of the word of the Lord by Hofea," which fome have fuppofed to imply, that when God began to manifeft himfelf, he addrefled Hofea ; but it perhaps means only, that the firft revelation to (a) Hofea was as follows, [b] Chap. i. i. Uzziah, or, as he is fometimes called, Azariah, and Ozias, afcended the throne of Judah in the twenty-feventh year of Jeroboam the Second, that is, accord- ing to fome chronologifts, in the twenty-feventh year of his reign, from thf xra of his conjunclion with his father -, and OF THE BOOK OF IIOSEA. 425 who began to reign over Jerufalem about A. M. 3 1 94. According to ibme accounts of no great authority £c] he was of the tribe of Iffachar, and ot tne city of Beleenor [d] ; others reprefent him to have been le tribe of Judah. He was the fon of Beeri [e], and entered on the prophetic office ibme time be- tween the years of 3194 and 3219. He continued to propbeiy above fixty years : during the fucceffive feigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, Kings of Judah; and probably to about the third year of the ieign of the laft; or if we reckon by the Kings of Ifrael, againft which nation he chiefly prophefied, he may be defcribed as having flourifhed during the reign of Jeroboam and his fucceffors, to the fixth year of Hofea, which correfponds with the third year of Hezekiah. Hofea was therefore nearly contemporary with Ifaiah, Amos, and Jonah. It in the fixteenth year of his monarchy, which commenced A. M. 3179. As Jeroboam reigned forty. one years, Hofea mull have entered on his miniftry before the twenty-fifth year of Uzziah's reign, if he prophefied while Uzziah and Jeroboam were contemporaries. Vid. Comm. en z Kings xv. 1. [c] Pfeudo Epiphan. & Doroth. de Vit. Prophet. [d] Or Bethfome, not Beleemoth. Vid. Druf. in Ofee, ch. i. 1. [e] Not Beerah, who was taken captive by Tiglath-Pilefer. Vid. 1 Chron. v. 6. whofe name is, indeed, fpelt differently* and who was a Prince of the Reubenites. The word Beeri im- plies a well ; or as fome fay, it is derived from a word which im- ports teaching : whence an argument in fupport of the Rabbinical fancy, that Hofea was the fon of a Do&or, or Prophet. Hofea's flame fignines a Saviour. 1* 426* OF THE BOOK OF HOSEA. is probable that he refilled chiefly in Samaria ; and that he was the firft Prophet, of thole at leaft whole prophecies we poffefs, that predicted the deftruction of that country ; which was effected foon after the Prophet's death by Salmanefer, King of AiTyria [fJ. Hosea undoubtedly compiled his own prophecies, and he fpeaks of himielf in the firft peribn in this book [g]. Calmet, indeed, on account of fome fuppofed chronological difficulties, queitionsthe au- thenticity of the firft verfe, which he conceives to have been a fubfequcnt addition; but thefe difficul- ties may be folved without having recourfe to fuch conjectures. The book is cited by St. Matthew as unqueftionably the infpired production of a Pro- phet [h], as likewife by St. Paul [i], and, indeed, by Chrift himfelf [k J. The prophecies of Ilofea being fcattered through the book without date or connection, cannot now be chronologically arranged with any certainty. They are, however, perhaps placed in the order in which they were at firft uttered ; and Wells, upon fome probable conjectures, fuppofes them to have been delivered in the following fucceffion, reckoning by the Kings of Ifrael. i [f] 2 Kings xviii. 10. Hieron. in Ofce, cap. i. Sc Ufler ad A. M. 3197. [g] Chap. iii. 1, 2, 3. [h] Matt. ii. 15. from Hofea xi. 1. and Chand. Dcf. ch, xi„ feft. 1. [1] Rom. ix. 25^ 26. 1 Cor. xv. 35. [k] Matt. ix. 12, 13. xii. 7. In OF THE BOOK OF HOSEA. 4-7 The fifth chapter, to chap. vi. 3. inciufively. In the reign of Jeroboam, The three lirft chapters. In the Interregnum which" fucceeded the death of ►The fourth chapter. Jeroboam, In the reign of Menahem,"| or in that of his ion Pekahiah. According! to which account none y are aiiigned to thefhort [ intermediate reigns of ZechariahandShallum,J T ., • »■«,. • 7 From chap. vi. 4. to chap. Jn the reign ot Pekah, } .. ". " 3 vn. 10. inciufively. "From chap. vii. 1 1. to the end. Com p. chap. vii. 1 1 . with 2 Kings xvii. 4. Wells fubdivides this portion into two parts, fuppofingthe firft which terminates with the tenth chapter, to have been delivered be- fore the King of Aflyria took away the golden calf that was at Lethe! - and the remainder after that event. 1 At whatever periods the prophecies were deliver- ed, the ocealion and defign of them are fufficiently clear. In the reign of Hofea, 42S OF THE BOOK OF HOSEA. clear. The author, in one continued ftrain of in- ventive, declaims againft the fins of Ifrael ; expofes in the ftrongeft terms the fpiritual whoredoms of thofe who worlhipped the vain idols erecled at Bethel and Bethaven, calling on Judah to fhun pollutions fo onenfive to Jehovah. He denounces God's vengeance againft Ephraim, (thereprelentativeoftheten tribes,) who fhould vainly call on other nations for protection. He points out the folly of the people in their pur- suits : telling them, that they had " fown the wind, and fhould reap the whirlwind." He threatens them in many prophecies, from among which we may fe- left, as remarkable proofs of that foreknowledge with which the Prophet was infpired, thofe in which he foretold the captivities, dilperfion, and fufferings cf Ifrael [l] ; the deliverance of Judah, from Sen- nacherib, allufively figurative of falvation by Chrift [m] ; the puniihment of Judah, and the demolition of its cities [n] ; the congregation of the Gentile converts [o] ; the prefent ftate of the Jews [p], and their future reftoration in the general eftabliiliment of the Meffiah's kingdom [q] ; the calling of our Sa- viour out of Egypt [r] ; his refurrection on the third [l] Chap. i. 4, 5. v. 5— 7.1X. 3, 6— 17.x. c, 6, i$. xiii. 16. [m] Chap. i. 7. comp. with 2 Kings xix. 35. and Chand, Def. ch. ii. feft. 1. p. 70. [n] Chap. v. 10. viii. 14. [o] Chap. i. iOj 11. ii. 23. comp. with Rom. ix. 24, 26. [p] Chap. iii. 4. Vid. Origen. Philocal. c. i. Hicron. in log, [o] Chap. i. 11. iii. 5. xiv. 4, 8. [r] Chap. xi. 1. comp. with Matt. ii. 15. and Hieron. Grot. & in loc. day ; OF THE BOOK OF HOSEA. 42$ day [s] ; and the terrors of the laft judgment, figu- ratively to be repreiented in temporal deftruclion impending over Samaria [t]. Thus, amidft the de- nunciations of wrath, the people were animated by ibme dawnings of favour ; and taught to cultivate righteouihefs and mercy in expectation of the blef- fings of the Lord [u] ; and in the aflurances of a rinal ranfom from the power of the grave, .and of a redemption from death to be vanquiilied and de- ftroyed [x]. The ftile of Hofea has been confidered as particu- larly obicure ; it is fententious and abrupt, and cha- racterized by a comprefiive and antiquated caft. The tranikions of perfon are iuddcn ; the connexive and adverfative particles frequently omitted. His figures and fimilitudes are rather lively than elegant, and are traced with more force than exaclnefs [y]. I lis writings are animated with a fine fpirit of indigna- tion, defcriptive of the zealous refentment which he felt againft the princes and priefts who countenanced the iniquities of the people ; and his work may be conlidered as a noble exordium againft thofe general [s] Chap. vi. 2. comp. with i Cor. xv. 4. Auguft. de Trinit. cap. xxviii. Cyprian, cont. Jud. Lib. II. cap. xxiv. Bernard. Serin. 1. in Refur. Orig. Homil. 5. in Exod. Tertul. Adverf. Jud. c. xiii. and Commentators. [t] Chap. x. 8. comp. with Luke xxiii. 30. and Rev. vi, 16. Hieron. in loc. and Low'Ji on Ifaiah ii. 19. [u] Chap, x. 12. Kieroru in loe, [xj Chap. xiii. 14. comp. with 1 Cor. xv. 55, and Tocos*., in loc. [y] Lovvth's Prslecl. 21. offences 4oO OV THE E00K OF IIOSEA. offences which the Prophets who fucceeded him moi'e particularly detailed ; as well as a diffufe revelation of thole judgments which were afterwards more mi- nutely defcribed. The fubjeel:. of Hofea's marriage has been much agitated. Many Jewifh and Chriftian writers con- ceive it to have been enjoined, and performed in a literal and hiftorical fenfe [z] ; fome fuppofmg that " a wife of whoredoms" may imply a wife who mould prove falfe [a] ; or only a wife from among the Israelites, who were remarkable for their idola- trous fornications ; as likewife by an adulterefs [b], whom the Prophet is represented afterwards to have bought, mav be underftood, a woman who had apoftatized from God in a fpiritual fenfe. Thole who contend for the hiftorical truth of thefe rela- tions, maintain that all impropriety in fuch proceed- ings was dune away by God's command ; and that the immediate minifter of God might, confiftently with the ddign of his appointment, be employed thus to illuitrate the fcandalous conduct of the 11- raelites. Other writers however contend, that thefe [z] Hieron. & Theodoret in loc. Auguft. Grotius, Cah met's Preface. Carpzov. Introd. ad Lib. Bib. Pars III. p. 277. Abarbin. & Baiil in loc. cap. viii. p, 933. Grot. & Wells in loc. [a] Wells, Diodat. &c. [b] It is uncertain, whether by the woman fppken of in the third chapter, is meant Hofea's wife, whom he is commanded to take back after her infidelity, as predicted ; or a different perfon appointed for the Prophet after the death of the firft wife. Con* fait Pocock, and other Commentators. accounts OF THE BOOK OF HOSEA. 431' accounts are defcriptive of trania6tions in vifion, as the expreffion of " the word of the. Lord," that came to the Prophet, might leem to intimate [c] ; and others confider the relations as fictitious repre- lentations furniihed by way of parable [d]. Without prefuming to determine on either iide on a fubjeft ib difficult, it may be obferved, that it was not in- coniiftent with the character of a vifion, or of a parabolical fiction, to fpecify minute particulars with narrative exa&nefs [e]. The names, therefore, of the perfonages introduced [f] in the accounts, can furnifh no explanation of the nature of the tranfac- tions ; and whether real or fictitious, they might witli equal confiftency be reprefented as figurative. [c] Aben-Ezra, R. David Kimchi, Maimon. More Nevoch, L. II. c. xlvi. Hieron. Prasf. in Cora, and General Preface, p. 333, note u. [d] Hieron. in loc. Aben-Ezra, Ifidor, &c. The Chaldee Paraphraft has been thought to have confidered it as a parable. He introduces the account thus : " The Lord faid unto Hofea, Go, and utter a prophecy," &c. Vid. R. Tanch. Rivet, Junius Tremellius, Pocock, &c. [e] Ezek. xxiii. Luke xvi. 20 — 51. [f] By '* children of whoredoms," we att probably to under- hand legitimate children of a woman addided to fornication ; p:rverfe, lewd, or idolatrous children, who (hould imitate the vonduft of their mother. OF [ 132 ] OF THE BOOK of the PROPHET JOEL. THE Book of Joel is placed in the Hebrew Bible immediately after that of Hoiea ; but in the Septuagint verfion the books of Amos and Micah are interpofed between them. It is difficult to determine whether the Greek tranflators were authorized by chronology to change the order, fince there is no pofitive criterion by which the age of Joel can be afcertained. St. Jerom, however, and many of the ancients [a], were of opinion, that as no date is prefixed to the book, its author mould be fup- pofed, agreeably to the Jewifh rule, to have ilourifh- ed at the fame time with Hcfea, whole writings in the Hebrew manufcripts immediately precede. This rule is, however, not to be depended on ; neither can any proof of the priority of Joel be drawn from [a] Hieron. Prsef. in Froph. Thcodor. in Pra?loq. Propli. Clem. Alex. Strom. Lib. I. Auguft. dc Civit. Dei, Lib. XVIII. c. xxvii. 1 the OF THE BOOK OF JOEL. 433 the notion fupported by Ulher [b] : who conceived that the famine and drought of which Joel fpeaks as impending in his time, were parts of the fame affliction which Amos reprefented as actually come to pafs [c] ; for Joel prophefied calamities againft Judah; and Amos delcribes afflictions which were feemingly fuftained, as a peculiar judgment only fey the people of Ifrael. Still, however, there is no fuf- ficient reafon for departing from the Hebrew order [d] ; nor is it neceflary to fuppofe that Joel prophe- tic d after the captivity of the ten tribes, merely be- caufe he makes no mention of Ifrael. His com- niifiion probably was confined to Judah, as that of Holea, his fuppofed contemporary, was chiefly re- fti i6ted to Samaria ; and had the divine threats been, already accompiimed againft Ifrael, it is reafonable to fuppofe that the Prophet would, like his iucceffbr*, have inftruc~ted the people to take Warning by the fate of a lifter kingdom [e~|. We mav therefore iafely fup- pole him to have lived in the reigns of Czziah, King of Judah, and of Jeroboam, King of Ifrael [f], who flouriihed [b] Uffer ad A. M. 3197. Lloyd's Tables, [c] Amos iv. 7, 8. [d] Abarb. Prsef. in 12 Proph. [e] Ifrael mentioned in ch. iii. 2. means not merely the ten tribes, but the whole nation of the Jews ; and the Prophet fpeaks prophetically of a future difperfion among the nations from which God's people mould be gathered. [f] Lloyd's Tables. A French writer, (P. Pezron, fur les Prophetes,) fixes the prophecy of Joel to the twentieth year ofUzziah, and the thirty-fixth of Jeroboam the Second. ViJ. F £ alfo. 434 Of THE BOOK OF JOEL. flourifhed as contemporary fovereigns between A.M.. 31^4 and 3C19; and to have delivered his prophe- cies foon after Iloi'ea had commenced his mimicry ; though lbme Jewifh and Chriftian writers have choi'en to affign to him a later period [g]; lbme placing him in the reign of Jotham [11] ; others in that of Joram [i]; and others contending that he prophefied under Manaffeth [k] ; or Jonah [l], the laft of which monarchs began to reign about 640 years before the birth of Chriit. Joel was the ion of Pethuel, or Eethuel, and ac- cording to lbme reports, of the tiibe of Reuben [mJ. alio., Joel ii. 20. which contains a prediction, that feems, at leaft, in its fecoiidary fenfe, to relate to the deftruftion of Sen- nacherib's arm;.-, which happened in the reign of Hezekiah, A. M. 3294. •[g] Poli Synopfls. [h J Auguft. de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVIII. c» xxvii. [1] The advocates for this period maintain, that Joel fore- {Viewed the impending famine which defolated Judaea, feven. years in the reign of Joram. Vid. 2 Kings via. 1 — 3. [k] Seder Olam Rabba, & Znta, KimcK, R. Salomo, R. David Ganz, Drufius, and Wells's Preface to Joel. Wells maintains, that the famine or dearth of which Micah prophefied, was to take jjjlace (and did happen) in the time of Manaffcth. Vid„ Wells's- Freface to ?vlieah, and in Micah vi. 14. note a. a. [l] Calmet's Preface fur Joel. He conceives Joel to have been contemporary with Jofiah, to whofe reign he- aflighs the drought fpoken of by Jeremiah, ch. xii. 4. xiv. But the laft of thefe chapter-, whether prophetic' or d'efcriptive, was compofed probably m the reign of Jehoiakim, the fucceflqr of Jofiah. ■ Epiphan. d.e Vir. Prophet. He' OF THE BOOK OF JOEL. 435 He is related to have been born at Bethoron [n] ; which was probably the lower or nether Bethoron, a town in the territory of Benjamin [o], between Jerufalem and Ctefarea. Of the particulars of his life, or of the age to which he attained, we have no account [p]. Dorotheus relates only, that he died in peace at the place of his nativity. The book appears to be entirely prophetic, though Joel, under the impreffion of forefeen calamities, de- fcribes their eftefcts as prefent ; and by an animated representation, anticipates the fcenes of mifery which lowered over Judaea [q]. Though it cannot be po- iitively determined to what period the clelcription contained in the firft chapter may apply, it is gene- rally fuppofed that the Prophet blends two fubjects of affliction in one general confideration, or beautiful al- legory ; and, that under the devaftation to be produced by locuftsin the vegetable world, he pourtrays fome more diftant calamities to be produced by the armies of the Chaldasans in their invafion of Judcea [r]. And [n] Dorotheus writes Bethomeron. Huet propofes to read Betharan, a place in the territory of Gad, adjacent to the tribe of Reuben ; or Bethnemra in the dillricl of Gad ; or Bethabara ; or Beelmeon, which was beyond Jordan, in the tribe of Reuben. [o] Jofh. xviii. 13, 14. [p] Jerom, though he fuppofcs him to have been contemporary with Hofea, conceives that he furvived (as well as Hofea, Amos, Obadiah, and Jonah) the captivity of the ten tribes. [oj Chap. i. 4 — 7, 10, 16 — 28. and Lowth's Prajleft. i^. [r] Thofe who will confult Pliny, Bochart, and the na- ■t»ralifts and travellers in general, will find much caufe to ad- F f 2 mir? A3$ OF THE BOOK OF JOEL. And hence a defigned ambiguity in the exprefiions. In the fecond chapter the Prophet proceeds to a more general denunciation of God's vengeance, which is delivered with fuch force and aggravation of eireum- itance, as to be in fome meafure defcriptive of that final judgment which every temporal difpenfation of the Deity muft faintly prefigure. The fevere decla- rations of Joel are intermingled with exhortations to repentance, and to the auxiliary means of promoting its effects, fafting and prayer; as alio with promifes of deliverance, and of a profperity predictive of evangelical bleffings. In treating of thefe he takes- occatron to foretel, in the cleareft terms, the general effufion of the Holy Spirit, which was to characterize theGofpel difpenfation[s]; concluding with aftriking deicription of the deltruclion of Jerufalem which fol- lowed foon after, and punimed the Jews for their ob- Itinate rejection of the ilicred influence ; fpeaking in terms that, as well as thole of our Saviour which refembled them [t], had a double afpect, and re- ferred to a primary and a final difpenfation. In the third chapter, Joel proceeds to foretel the future aflemblagc of all nations into the valley of Jehofhaphat [u],. where the enemies of God will be mire Joel's defcriptive pictures of the definition to be produced by locufts ; and underftand with what force and propriety the savages of thofe all-devouring enemies are made figuratively to reprefent the devaftation and havock. of an invading army. [s] Joel ii. 28 — 32. comp. with Acts ii. 1 — 2 t. and Afts x. 44. [t] Joel ii. 30, 31. comp. with Matt. xxiv. 29. [u] The original cxpreflion means the. valley of the Lord's judgment, from Jehovah, and Shaphat, to judge. cut OF THE BOOK OF *OEfc. • .437 cut oft* in Tome final excifion [x];- and the Prophet -concludes with the aiTurance of ibme glorious itate of profperity to be enjoyed by the church ; repre- fenting its perfections and blefilngs under the poeti- cal emblems of a eolden a?e. In confideration of thefe important prophecies, we need not wonder that the Jews mould have looked up to Joel with particular reverence [y], or that he fhould be cited as a Prophet by the evangelical writers [z]. The (tile of Joel is equally perfpicuous and ele- gant ; obfeure only towards the conclufion, where the beauties of his expreflion are fomewhat ihaded by alluiions to circumftances yet unaccomplished. His defcriptions are highly animated; the contexture of the prophecy in the firft and fecond chapters is extremely curious ; and the double deftruclion to be produced by locufts, and thole enemies of which they were the harbingers, is painted with the molt expreffive force, and under terms that are recipro- cally metaphorical, and admirably adapted to the twofold character of the defcription [a]. The whole work is extremely poetical. Herman Von-der [x] The precifc: application of his prophecy muft be (hewn by the event. It is fuppofed to relate to thofe circumftances predicted in Ezekiel, chap, xxxix. 5 — n, Rev. xx. 8, 9. [y] Joel is related to have received the Cabala, or traditionary explication of the law from Micah, [z] Chap. ii. 32. cornp. withRom.x, 13. Acts ii. 16 — zi. [a] Lowth's Prel. 21. Chandler, &c. T f 3 Hardt, 43$ €T THE BOOK Of JOEI. Hardt [b], a learned German, conceiving that Joel's prophecies were compofed in elegies, endeavoured ahout th$ beginning of the feventeenth century, to reduce them to Iambic verfe. The)7 undoubt- edly, like the reft of the prophecies, have a metrical arrangement. [b] Wolfii Biblioth. Heb. torn. ii. p. 169. and Lowth's Pref, to Ifaiah. OP [ 439 J z^=k OF THE BOOK of the PROPHET AMOS. AMOS appears to have been contemporary with Hofca, but it is uncertain which was the hrft honoured by divine revelations. They both began to prophefy during the time that Uzziah and Jero- boam the Second reigned over their refpettive king- doms ; and Amos law his firft viiion " two years before the earthquake [a] ;" which, as we learn from Zechariah [b], happened in the days of Uzziah. As there is no fufficient reafon to fuppofe that this firft verfe was added by any writer fubfequent to Amos : iince he himfelf might have annexed the sera in which he beheld \\is viiion, when he afterwards collected his prophecies, and committed them to writing, we muft fuppofe this earthquake to have happened while Uzziah and Jeroboam Mere con- temporaries, or at leait within two years of that [a] Amos i. i. [b] Zechaii^Ji xiv. 5. F f 4 period, 44Q 0¥ THX BOOK Of AMOS, period.. But little attention therefore is due to the account of Jofephus ; who reprefents the ihock to vhave been felt on the occafion of Uzziah's ufurpa- tion of the pricftly office, when the prefumptuous King attempted to offer incenie to the Lord [c] ; which facrilegious attempt is by fome placed in the twenty-fifth year [d], and by fome full more towards the conclufion of Uzziah's reign [e] ; for according to the moft extended calculations, Jeroboam ancl Uzziah did not flouriih as contemporary lbvereigns above twenty-five years. Amos, however, began to prophely fome time between A. M. 3194 and 3219. Some liave confounded him with the father of Ifaiah, The Prophet Amos [f] was a native of Tekoa^ a'fmall town in the territory of Judah, about four leagues fouthward from Jerufaiem, and fix fouth- ward from Bethlehem [g] ; adjacent to a vaft wil» dernefs, [c] 2 Chron. xxvi, \S — 21. [d] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. IX. cap. x. xi. [e] The daring attempt was probably jnade towards the conclufion of Uzziah's reign, as upon that occafion he was ftricken with a leprofy that lafted unto the day of his death ; and his fon Jotham took upon him the government, who was not born till after Jeroboam's death. Vid. Uifer. Annul, ad A. M. 3221. [f] Clemens Alex. Strom. Lib. I. Epiphan. de Vit. Pro. phet, D}cy, Amos, or Hamos, fignifief $arct^», portans, loaded, that is, perhaps, with the burden of prophecy, chap. vi«. 10. li names were intentionally defcriptive, they mult have been providentially impofed, or alTumed after the difplay of chara/ter. [cj Amos i. 1. 2 Chron. xi. $, 6. Epiphanius places it if) the lot of Zcbulon ,• but Eufebius, Cyril, and St* Jerom, whe OF THE BOOK OF AMOS. 44l 4ernefs, where probably Amos might have exer- filed his profeffion of an herdfman. Some, indeed gunk that he was not born at Tekoa, but that he only refided there when commanded by Amaziah to leave Bethel [h], But Amos does not appear to have regarded the arrogant injunction of the Prieft, but to have continued boldly to prophefy wherever the fervice of God required his prefence. Amos was by profeffion an herdfman, and a ga- therer of fycamore fruit [i]. In the fimplicity of former times, and in the happy climates of the Eaf^ thefe occupations were by 110 means confidered ia that degrading light in which they have been viewed iince refinement hath introduced a tafte for the ele- gant arts of life, and eftablilhed faftidious diftinctions. He was no Prophet, as he informed Amaziah [k], neither was he a Prophet's fon ; that is, he had no regular education in the fchools of the Prophets, but wfy> lived near Tekoa, place it to the fouth of Jerufalem, ia the territory of Judah. Vid. Eufeb. de locis Ebraicis. CyrilL Fraef. Enar. in Amos. Hieron. Procem. in Amos, et de loci*. Ebraicis, [k] Chap. vii. it. [i] Chap. vii. 14. The fycamore fruit was a fpecies of wild fig, fometimes called the Egyptian fig, which is faid to grow from the trunk, and not from the branches of the tree. The Septuagint tranflators interpret the Hebrew word a'apjp {JvlSl, Hvt^t-v rot QuKatfjutet, opening the fyc amine fruit ; as it was thought neceffary to open the Ikin of this fruit that it might ripen, Vid. PliniiHift. Natur. Lib. XIII. cap, vii, Theophraf* X)iofcorid. et Theod. in loc. Tk] Chap. vii. 14. was 442 OF THE BOOK OF AMOS, was called by an exprefs irrefiftible commiffion from God [l], to prophefy unto his people Ifrael. The Holy Spirit did not diidain to f peak by the voice of the molt humble man ; and felecled its ministers as well from the tents of the fhepherd, as from the palace of the fovereign [m] ; refpecting only the qualities and not the conditions of its agents, as capable of infpiring knowledge and eloquence where they did not exift. Amos undoubtedly compofed his prophecies in their prefent form. He fpeaks of himielf as the author of them [x], and his prophetic character is eftaMiihed not only by the admimon of his book into the canon, and by the teftimony of other writers [o], but by the exact accomplishment of many prophecies which he delivered. His work confifts of feveral diftinct difcourfes ; the particular period of their de- livery cannot now be afcertained [p]. They chiefly refpecTt the kingdom of Ifrael, though he fometimes inveighs againft Judah, and threatens the kingdoms that bordered on Palcltine £q] ; the Syrians [b, J ; [lJ Amos iii. 8. vii. 15. [m] 1 Cor. i. 27 — 29. [„n] Chap. vii. 8. viii. 1,2. [o] Tobit ii. 6. Acts vii. 42, 43. xv. 15—17. [p] Some have fbppofed that the firit of his prophecies is con- tained in the feventh chapter ; and that the contents of the other chapters were afterwards delivered at Tekoa. [oj Vid. two firft chapters. Thefe prophecies were fulfilled by the victories of the Kings of Aflyria and Babylon. [r] Chap. i. 3 — 5, comp. with 2 Kings xvi. 9. Philiftines : OF THE BOOK OF AMOS. 443 Philiftines [s] ; Tynans [t] ; Edomites [u] ; Am- monites [x] ; and Moabites [y]. He predicts in clear terms the captivities and the deftruction of Ii- rael, to be preceded by fearful figns on earth, and in the heavens [z] ; concluding with affurances that God would not utterly deftroy the houfe of Jacob; but after lifting, as it were, and cleanling the houfe of Ifrael among the nations, God fhould again raife up the tabernacle, that is, the kingdom of David ; to be enlarged to more than its firft fplendor by the acceffion of Gentile fubjefts ; and to be fucceeded by the eftabliihment of that government which the Prophet describes under poetical images as a blefled difpeniation of fbcurity, abundance, and peace [a]. [s] Chap. i. 6, 7. comp. with 2 Kings xviii. 8. Jerem. xlvii. 1. Quint. Curt. Lib. IV. 6. Comp. alfo, chap. i. 8. with 2 Chron. xxvi. 8. and Jerem. xlvii. 5. [t] Chap. i. 9, 10. comp. with Ezek. xxvi. 7 — 14. Jofeph, Cont. Apion, Lib. 1. and O. Curt. Lib. IV. 13. [u] Chap. i. 11, 12. comp. with Jerem. xxv. 9, 21. and xxvii. 3 — 6. 1 Mace. v. 5. and Prid. Con. Part II. ad Ann. A. C. 165. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XIII. c. ix. [x] Chap. i. 13 — 15. comp. with Jerem. xxvii. 3, 6, [v] Chap. ii. j — 3. comp. Jerem. xxvii. 3 — 6. [z] Chap. viii. 8 — 19. Ufher remarks, that about eleven years after the time at which Amos prophefied, there *vere two eclipfes of the fun ; one upon the feaft of Tabernacles, and the other at the time of the PafTover. The prophecy, therefore, in its firft afpecl, might allude to the ominous darknefs which on thefe occafions " turned their feafts into mourning.'* Vid. Utter. Annal. ad A.M. 3213. Hieron. Theod. Sc Grot. in loc. [a] Amos ix. 11 — 15. Adts xv. 16. Tobit xiii. 10, n» Joel Hi. 18. Chandler's Def. chap. ii. fed. 1. p. 168. and Com* in loc. Auguft, de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVIII. c. xxviii. TflE 444 OF THE BOOK Of AMOS. The zeal with which the Prophet reproved the impenitence of the people:, and the fevere threats which he denounced againft the oppreffion, effemi- nacy, and luxurious indolence that prevailed, exas- perated i'o much the court of Jeroboam, which cul- tivated its idolatries at Bethel, that they drew upon him the relentment of the priefts arid princes of the people ; and tradition relates*- that he was [#] ill treated and put to death by Uzziah, the ion of Ama- ziah [c], who was irritated by his prophecies and ceni ures, but who foon after experienced the divine vengeance in the calamities which Amos had pre- dicted to his family and country. Some writers who have adverted to the condition of Amos, have with a minute affectation of criticifm, pretended to dilcover a certain rudenefs and vulga- rity in his itile ; and even St. Jerom is of opinion, that he is deficient in magnificence and fublimity : applying to him the words which St. Paul {"peaks of himfelf [p], " that he was rude in fpeech, though not in knowledge ;M and his authority, lays Bifliop Lowth, has influenced many commentators to re- prefent him as entirely rude and void of elegance ; whereas it requires but little attention to be con- vinced that he " is not a whit behind the very chiefett" of the Prophets : equal to the greateit in loftinefs of fentiment, and icarcely inferior to any in the fplendor of his diction, and in the elegance [b] Cyrill. Praef. Expof. in Amos. [c] Epiphan. de Vit. Proph. c. xii. Jfidor. de Vita et Morte. S, S, c, xliii. Doroth. S) nop. cap. ii. Chron. Pafcal. p. 147. Huron, Com, in Amos. 2 Cor. xi. 6. of OF THE BOOK OF AMOS. 44£ of his competition. Mr. Locke has obferved, that his companions are- chiefly drawn from lions and other animals, becaufe he lived among, and was converfant with luch objects. But, indeed, the finelt images and allufions which adorn the poetical parts of fcripture in general, are drawn from fcenes of nature, and from the grand objects that range in her walks ; and true genius ever delights in cons- idering thefe as the real fources of beautv and man- niflcence [e]. Amos had the opportunities, and a mind inclined to contemplate the works of the Deity, and his descriptions of the Almighty are particularly fublime. Indeed, his whole work is animated with a very flue mal'culine eloquence. [e] Lowth's Pnel. Poet., 21. OF [ 446 ] OK I .T "t\Jtm OF THE BOOK or the PROPHET OBADIAIL THIS Prophet hath furnifhed us with no par* ticulars of his own origin or life, any more than of the period in which he was favoured by the divine revelations. That he received a commifiion to propheiy is evident ; as well from the admifii on of his work into the facred canon, as from the comple- tion of thofe predictions which he delivered. Ac- cording to fome traditionary accounts [a], he was of the tribe of Ephraim; and a native of Bethacamar [b], which Epiphanius defcribes as in the neigh- bourhood of Sichem; but which, according to Huet, was a town in the hilly part of the territory of Ju- dah ; and there probably he prophelied, though [a] Pfeudo Epiphan. Doroth. Ifidor. &c. N [b] Or Bethacara, or Bcthacaron. Huet propofes to read feethacad, a town of Samaria ; but Obadiah was probably of the tribe of Judah, and prophefied agaixift the infulting enemies of his country. fome OF THE LOOK OF OBADIAH, 447 fome fuppofe that he was carried captive to Babylon; and others that he died in Samaria [c]. There is fcarce an Obadiah mentioned in iacred hiftory who has not been confidered by different writers as the fame perfon with the Prophet. The prince whom Jehomaphat employed to teach in the cities of Judah [d] ; the governor of Ahab's houfe, who refcued the hundred Prophets from the ven- geance of Jezebel [e] ; the captain of Ahaziah, who found favour with Elijah [f] ; the overfeer appointed by Jofiah to infpect the reparation of the temple [g] ; each has been Separately reprefented as the Prophet, though not one of them is characterized in fcripture under that defcription; and all of them, except perhaps the laft, lived long before the period at which Obadiah the Prophet muft be fuppofed to * [c] St. Jerom fpeaks of his tomb at Sebafte, formerly Sa- maria, and fays, that St. Paul vifited it, and performed miracles there ; but this could not contain the remains of Obadiah, for in the time of the Emperor Julian, the Gentiles emptied the fepul- chres, burnt the bones of the Prophets, and difperfed the afhe^ after mixing them with thofe of beafts, about A. D. 362. Vid. Julian, Mifopogon, & Baillet Vies des Saints- duV; Teft. i-fjuin. 19 Nov. [d] 2 Chron. xvii. 7. Sar.ct. Proleg. II. n. 5. [e] 1 Kings xviii. 4. Hieron. in Abdiam, & in Epift. Paul. R. Selom. Jarchi, R. David Kimchi, and R. Aben-Ezra in Abd. 1. R. David Ganz, in Chroa. Sixt. Senens in Abd. Sc Mercer. Com. [f] 2 Kings i. 13. Clemens Alex. Strom, t. Eufeb. Chron. [c] 2 Chron, xxxiv, xz. have 44$ OF THE BOOK OF OBAD1A1L have flouriflied. Equally unfounded are thofe con< je&ures by which it is imagined that he was the hufband of the widow of Zarephath [h], and a difciple of Elijah [i] ; as well as that of the ancient Hebrew doctors, who conceived that he was an Idumsean, who having become a profelyte to the? Jewifh religion, was infpired to prophefy againft the country of which he had forfaken the fuperfti- tions [k]. Huet, and other writers, in confideration of the place which he holds among the Prophets in the Hebrew canon, fuppofe him to have been contem* porary with Hofea, Amos, and Joel. In conformity to which opinion, Huet alio conceives that the Pro- phet delivered his threats againft the Edomites [l] becauie they took poffeffion of Elah after it had been conquered by Pekah and Rezin in the reign of Ahaz, and exercifed great cruelties againft the Jews [m]. All thofe writers who imagine that Oba- diah [h] Lyran. in 4. Reg. c. it. initio. The widow of Zare- phath "has alfo been reprefented as the mother of the Prophet Jonah. [1] Clemens Alex. Strom. I. Eufeb. Chron. 8c Aben-Ezra. [k.] R. Selom, Jarchi, & R. David Kimchi, in Abd. 1. & R. Ifr. Abarb. Prsf. in Prophet. Minor. Cyrill. Prsef. in Abd. [l] The Edomites were the defcendants of Efau ; they pof- fcSed. Arabia Petraa, all the country between the Red Sea and the Lake of Sodom, and fomc adjacent territory. [m] Huet. Demonf. Evan, in Abd. Cyrill. Praef. in Abd. Grotius, and Lightfoot's Harmon, of the Old Teft. In our tranflatioa OF THE BOOK OF OBADIAII. 449 diah foretold the calamities which the Edomites fuf- fered from the invafion of Sennacherib, maintain that he lived in the reign of Ahaz or Hezekiah ; but it is more probable that he flourifhed about the fame time with Ezekiel and Jeremiah ; and the bell opinions concur in fuppoling him to have prophe- iied a little after the deftruction of Jerufalem by Nebuchadnezzar, which happened about A. M. 3410. He predicted therefore the fame circum- ftances which thofe Prophets had foretold againft the Edomites [x], who had upon many occafions favoured the enemies of Judah [o] ; and who, when ftrangers, carried their forces into captivity, and when they caft lots upon Jerufalem, had re- joiced at the deftruction, and infulted the children of Judah in their affliction [p]. translation of 2 Kings xvi. 6. no mention is made of the Edo- mites, but in the Vulgate it is rendered " the Edomites came to Elah." The words Aram and Edom are written in the Hebrew nearly in the fame manner ; and Calmet thinks that it mould be written Edom inftead of Syria, through the verfe, as the Edo- mites had previoufly porTeffion of Elah, but it does not appear that the Syrians had, for whom it could not therefore be recover- ed. Still, however, the Chaldaean, Hebrew, Syriac, and Arabic Terfions, as well as Jofephus, fuppofe that Rezin took Elah for the Syrians, and eftablifhed them there. Vid. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. IX. cap. xi. Grotius, &c. [n] Comp. Obad. ver. 3, 4. with Jerem. xlix. 16. Obad. ver. 5. with Jerem. xlix. 9. Obad. ver. 8. with Jer. xlix. 7. Obad. ver. 16. with Jer. xxv. 15 — 21. and xlix. 7 — 12, Vid. Ezek. xxv. 12, 14. and ch. xxxv. [o] 2 Chron. xxviii. 17. Joel iii. 19. [p]' Ver, 11 — 14. Ffalm exxxvii. 7, G g The 450 OF THE BOOK OF OBADIAII* Tn £ Prophet, after defcribing the pride and cruelty of the Edomites, declares that though they dwelt in fancied fecurity among the clefts of the rocks [q], yet that the " men of Teman [r] mould be dismayed,'' and " every one of the. Mount of Efau fliould be cut oft' by flaughter." That the men who had confederated with them againft Jacob [s], and been fnpported by them as their allies, fhould inflict the punifhment of their malevolence. The Prophet concludes with confolatory alfuranccs of fu- ture restoration and profperity to the Jews, to whom fhould arife deliverance from Zion : Saviours who ihould judge' the nations; and a fpiritual kingdom, appropriated and confecratcd to the Lord. Thefe prophecies began to be completed about five years after, when Nebuchadnezzar ravaged Idumaca [t] ; and difpoflefled the Edomites of much of Arabia- Petrsea, which they never afterwards- recovered. But t'hey were itill farther fulfilled in the conquefts of the Maccabees over the remainder of the Edomites [ u] ; and they received their final accomplishment [q] The fouth part of Paleftine, from Elcutheropolis to Pctra, (the ancient capital of Idumxa) and Elah, was full of rocks, in- habited by the natives. Vid. Hieron. In loc. [r] Teman, a city, or as fome fay, a province of Idumrra, fo- called from Teman, grandfon of Efnu. Vid. Jcrcm. xlix. 7, Amos i. 12. Vid. Hieron. & Eufcb. in loc. Ebraisis. [s] Obadiah ufes the expreffion, " thy brother Jacob," in allu- fion to Efau's hatred againft Jacob. Vid. Gen. :txvii. 41. a pri- mary fourcc of God's difplcafure againft the Edomites. [t] Ufler. ad A. M. 3419. Jofcph. Antiq. Lib. X. c. xii. f u] 1 Mace. v. 3, 65, ill OF THE BOOK OF 0£ADIAH. 451 in the advent of that Redeemer whom preceding Saviours had forefhewn. Obadiah's name implies, thefervantof the Lord: a title by which Mofes was diftinguilhed [x], and in which St. Paul gloried. The Prophet's work is fhort, but compoied with much beauty : it unfolds a very interefting fcene of prophecy, and an in- itructive leftbn againft human confidence and ma- licious exultation. [x] Numb. xii. 7. G 2 2 OF [452 ] OF THE BOOK of the PROPHET JONAH. rr^HOUGH Jonah be placed fifth in the order -*■ of the Minor Prophets, both in the Hebrew and in the Scptuagint copies, he is generally con- fidered as the molt ancient of all the Prophets, not excepting Ilofea. Jonah was the ion of Amittai, of the tribe of Zabulon ; and was born at Gath-hepher [a], which is fuppofed to have been the fame place with Jotapeta : a town remarkable for having fuf- tained, under the conduct of Jofephus, a fiege againtl the Roman army. It was iituated in the land of [a] Vid. 2 Kings xiv. 25. The fame place probably with Gittah-hepher. Vid. Jofli. xix. 13. Dorotheus erroneoufly affirms, that he was born at Carjathmaus, or Carjathjarim, in the tribe of Judah ; and buried at Saar, (Tyre in Phoenicia,) and St. Jerom has taken the trouble to refute fome who main- tained that Jonah was born at another Geth, near Lyddae, or Diofpolisj confounding Geth with Gath-hepher, and Diofpolis v.-ith Diocaifarea, Zabulon, OF THE BOOK OF JC-NWH. 453 Zabulon, near Siphorim [b], towards Tiberias, where was the canton of Ophir, or Hepher. St. Jerom in- forms us, that the Prophet's iepulchre was mewn there in his time ; and there the natives (till believe it to exift [c]. Since this place, as indeed all the land of Zabulon, was in Galilee [d], it may be pro- duced in confutation of the illiberal afTertion of the Pharifees, that out of Galilee arifeth no Prophet [e].- The Orientals now iliew his tomb at Moful [f], which they iuppole to be the fite where Nineveh itood ; and the Turks have built a moique there, in which they pretend to pofTefs his relics; while others, who refide at Gath-hepher, now a little Bour- gade, (hew a Mauibleum of Jonah in a fubterraneous chapel, incloled in a mofque, and compel travellers to enter barefoot. Such are the contefts of fuper- ftitious reverence, or the claims of mercenary rival* fliip? [b] Now called Diocxfarea. Vid. Hicron. Procem. Com. in Jonam. [c] Benjam. Itiner. et Brocardus Argentoratenfis Defcrip. Terras fanfta\ [d] Ifaiah ix. i. Matt. iv. 13, [e] John vii. 52. Nahum was a Galilean by birth, though of the tribe of Simeon ; and Malachi, as fome fay. [f] Thevenot's Travels, Part II. Book I. ch. xi.p. 50. Moful, now the feat of the Patriarch of the Neftorians, is on the Weftern fide of the Tigris ; and is by fome alTerted to have been a fuburb of Nineveh, which is faid to have been on the Eaftern fide, though Pliny maintains it to have been fituated on the Weftern fide. Vid. Plinii Lib. VI. cap. xiii. Benjajn. Tudela, Itiner. "Svlarfnam Chron. Ssec. xviii. p. 558. G g 3 Soils 454- OF THE BOOK OF JONAH. Some j'ewifti writers report upon a very ground- lefs fancy, that Jonah was the fon of the widow of Zarephath, whom Elijah railed from the dead [g] ; but Jonah represents himfelf as an Hebrew, and Za- rephath was a city of Sidon [h]. He is generally iuppofed to have flounihed in the reigns of Joalh and Jeroboam the Second, Kings of Iirael; the for- mer of wliom began to reign, A. M. 3] 63, the latter died A. Mi 3QZ0. In the Second Book of Kings [i ], Jonah is laid to have prophefied concern- ing Jeroboam, that he mould " reftore the coaft of Iirael ;"' which prophecy, now not extant, was per- haps delivered in the reign of Jehoahaz, the grand- father of Jeroboam, when the kingdom of Iirael was greatly oppreiied by the Syrians [kj ; and therefore it is probable that Biihop Lloyd does not place him much too high in fuppofmg that he prophefied to- wards the latter end of Jehu"s reign ; or in the begin- ning of that of Jehoahaz, when Hazael by his cruel [g] Hieron. & Ifidor. 8c Ouxft. ad Antioch. in Append, ad Oper. S. Athan. Qu. lxv. Jonah was the fon of Amittai, which word implies Truth in the Hebrew, and the widow had faid to Elijah, " The word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth." Vid. i Kings xvii. 24. Hence the Rabbinical con- ceit. Othars make him the fon . of the woman of Shunem, a. place in the tribe ci Iflachar. Vid. 2 Kings iv. 16. Some maintain, that he was the Prophet who was fent to anoint: Jehu King over Ifrael. Vid. 2 Kings ix. i, 2. R. David Kimchi, &c. [h] Ccmp. Luke iv. 26. with Jonah i. 9. [1] 2 Kings xiv. 25. [k] Comp. 2 Kings xiii, 3 — 7, with ? Kings xiv. 26. & Jofeph, treatment OF THE BOOK OF JOXAII. 4j5 treatment of Ilracl, was verifying the predictions of Elillia [].]. So that though Jonah might be con- temporary with Ilofea, Amos, and Ifaiah, he appears to have uttered (he prophecy alluded to, before any were delivered of thole now extant in the writings of the Prophets; and the prophecy concerning Ninevel% of which the publication is related in this book, mult, contrary to the opinion of many writers [:.i], have been delivered long before the time that Oba- ciiah propheiied. This book, which is chiefly narrative, furnifhes us with an account of the mandate that Jonah, who Mas more efpecially a Prophet to the Gentiles, re- ceived to preach againft Nineveh, the metropolis of that mighty kingdom of Aflyria, which was employ- ed by God as the " rod of his anger againft Ifrael and Judah[x]." It relates that Jonah, who was of a timid character [o], aware of the pride and falfe confidence of a city, equally diitinguilhed for its magnificence and corruption ; for its carelefs merri- ment, andinconiiderate difiipation [p], andconfeious [l] 2 Kings vii. 12. and 2 Kings xiii. 3, 4, 22. [m] Clem. Alex. Strom. Eufeb. Pra?p. Lib. X. c. xiv. Cyrill. Prcef. in Jon. Auguft. de Ciyit. Dei, Lib. XVIJI. c. tfxvii, Theod. Procem. in 12 Proph. [nJ Ifaiah x. 5. [o] Jonah, or Jonas, as it is written in the Greek, fignifies a dove, a name probably defcriptive of his gentle difpofition. [p] By Zephaniah it is called the rejoicing city, Kfucjwv N»;y fj or Uz- ziah [i]. The author of the prefent work [k] was unquef- tionably a contemporary with Haggai ; and began to propheiy two months after him, in the eighth month of the fecondyear of Darius Hyftafpes, A. M. 3484; being commifiloned as well as Haggai, to exhort the Jews to proceed in the building of the temple, after the interruption which the work had fuffered. We are informed by Ezra, that the Jews " profpered through the propheiy ing [l],-> and obeyed the in- ftructions of Zechariah, who continued to propheiy above two years ; the laft revelation of which the date is fpecified in this book, having been delivered in the fourth day of the ninth month of the fourth year of Darius Hyftafpes [m] ; Zechariah therefore probably lived to witnefs the completion of the tem- ple, which was finimed in about fix years ; and hav- [g] Ifaiah vjH. 2. [h] 2 Chron. xxiv. 21. Epiphan. &c. [1] 2 Chron. xxvi. 5. [x] Chap. i. 1. Ezra v. 1. vi. 14. Haggai i. 1. [l] Ezra vi. 14. [m] Chap. vii. 1. The month Chifleu coxrcfponds with part of our November and December* ins OF THE COOK OF ZF.CIIAK IAU, 495 ing contributed either as a prieft, or a member of the great fyncurogue, as well as a Prophet, to pro- mote the welfare and interefts of his country, died in peace, being probably a different perfon from the Zachariah mentioned by Chrift [n]. Zechariaii, who certainly collected his own pro- phecies into their prelent form [o], is mentioned as a Prophet by Ezra [p] ; and is cited as an infpired writer by the facred penmen of the New Teftament [oj. The minute accomplimment of his own ii- [n] Onr Saviour, vid. Matt, xxiii. 35. imputes to the Jews the blood of Zacharias, the fon of Barachias ; accufing them of having flain him between the temple and the altar. By this martyr, however, was probably meant Zecharias, the foa of Jehoiada, who is related in 2 Chron. xxiv. 21. to have been flain by command of Joafh in the court of the Lord's houfe, (which might be between the temple and the altar) for it is not conceivable that both Zachariah and Zechariah were flain in the fame manner. It is probable, therefore, that the copyifts of St. Matthew inferted Barachiah, (perhaps firit in the margin} think- ing that it mud have been the Prophet whofe writings were extant. And this is confirmed, if we confider that Barachiah is not mentioned in the parallel paflage of St. Luke. Vid. chap. xi. 5. And St. Jerom allures us, that in a manufcript copy of the Gofpel of St. Matthew, ufed by the Nazarenes, which he obtained permiiiion from the inhabitants of Bera=a in Syria, to copy, it was written, the fon of Jehoiada. Vid. Hieron. in Matt, xxiii. & de Script. Ecclef. Jofephus relates, that Zachariah, the fon of Baruch, was flain in the temple, but he certainly means the con temporary of Joafh. Vid, de Eell, Jud. L. IV. [o] Chap. i. 9. ii. 2. [p] Ezra v. 1. vi. 14, [o] Matt. xxi. 4, 5. xxvi. 31. xxvii. 9. Mark xiv. 27. John xiv. 15. xix. 37. Ephef. iv. 25. Rev. i. 7. and the mar- ginal references in our Bible, luitrious 496 OF THE BOOK OF ZECHAfcrAtt. luftrious prophecies bears a fignal teitimony to the truth of that infallible fpirit by which he was infpired. He was fo diftinguifhed for the peculiar excellency of his predictions, as to be ftiled the fun among the lefler Prophets. It is, however, the fun fometimes clouded by obfcurity. The aenigmatical caft of his vifions, which are of difficult interpreta- tion, muft, indeed, be luppofed neceiTarily to pro- duce foine fhades. The general defign of the work, however, is fufficiently obvious ; and it is occafion- ally illuminated with the brighteft and moft ftriking pafTages. The Prophet, in conformity with h's firlt inten- tion, begins with general exhortations to his country- men : exciting them to repent from the evil ways of their fathers, to whom the Prophets had vainly ad- drefTed their cry; defcribes, as an interefting repre- fentation which he had beheld in vifion, angels of the Lord miniftering to his will, and interceding for mercy on Jerufalem, and the defolate cities of Ju- , to hide. The word feems to have been firft applied only to books of doubtful authority ; or as it is ufed by Origen, to imply works out of the canon. It was afterwards employed to characterize fpurious and per- nicious books. It has been thought, that books of doubtful character were firft termed Apocryphal by the Jews, becaufe they were removed a-jro ty,$ xpWiqg from the ark of the cove- nant, where the canonical books were placed. Eufeb. Lib. de Pond. Sc Menfur. p. 534; or becaufe faut up from the generality of readers, and concealed, as fome afferr, in a cheft of the temple. In the primitive church, fome of thcfe books, efpecialiy thofe of Wifdom and EcclefidfticUs, were imparted to Catechumens, and all of them were allowed to be read under certain reftri&ions. Vid. Canon. Apoft. Athan. Synopf. 1 nexed 512 PREFACE TO TOE nexed to the canonical books, it is in a feparate divifion : and by no means upon an idea that they are of equal authority, in point of doctrine, with them ; or that they are to be received as oracles of faith ; to fanctify opinions, or to determine religious controverfies. It is univerfally allowed, that thefe books were not in the canon of the Jews, to whom alone " were committed the oracles of God [b] ;'! and, indeed, that they were compofed after the clofmg of the fa- cred catalogue; though fome writers withoutafhadovf of authority have pretended that fome of them, as Tobit, Judith, Ecclefiafticus, Baruch, and perhaps others, were received by the Jews into a fecond canon [c], laid to be made by a council aflembled at Jerufalem in the time of Eleazar the high-prieft, upon the occafion of fending the feventy-two inter- preters to Ptolemy King of Egypt [d] ; and that the relt were canonized by a third council, aflembled in the time of Sammai and Hillel ; but of thefe coun- cils, the Jews, tenacious as they are of traditions, have no account or memorial ; and the books iri queftion were compofed after the cefiation of the prophetic fpirit, by perfons who difplayed no cha- racters of infpiration ; and fome of whom feem to [b] Rom. iii. 2. Jofeph. cont. Apicn, Lib. I. Hieron. ProL Gal. Introduction, p. 8. [c] Hence they are fometimes called Deutero-canonical by the Romanics. [d] Geritbr. Chron. Lib. II. p. 190. col. 2. and p. 284^ col. 1. Maldonate de Sucram. Pcenit. q. de Purgat. p. 145.- Serar. in Mace. Prsloq, iii, have AfOCkYfUAL BOOKS. 5" 1 3 have declaimed its pretentions [e] ; and therefore thev were ranged bv the Jews among the writings which they termed Hagiographa, in an inferior ienle of that word [*■]. Tobit and Judith were, indeed, fuppofed by the Rabbinical conceits, to have been derived from that lower kind of infpiration which was called Bath Col filia vocis [g]. But this was an ublurd fancy, and none of the books are cited either as prophetic or doctrinal by our Saviour or his apoftles [nj ; and though fome writers have pretended to dHcover a coincidence between certain paiTages contained in them, and others in the New Teitament, it will be found that the evangelical writers on theie occafion? only accidentally concur in fentiment or expref- fion with the authors of the apocryphal books; or that the refemblance remits from an imitation of [e] i Mace. ix. 27. 2 Mace, ii. 30, 31. XT. 38, [f] The later Jews efteemed fome of the prophetical books to be Hagiogmpha in an higher fenfe of the word ; fuppofing them to be derived from the fecond degree in their fcale of prophecy. Vid. Maimon. More Nevoch. P. II. c. xlv. Huet. in Juiitiu The word was, peihaps, firft intended to defcribe the unin- fpired productions of holy men ; and afterwards improperly applied to fanciful diftinftions of the facred books. Vid, IntrocL p. 10. [g] Preface to the Prophets, p. 320, note f. [h] Index Teftimon. a Chrift. & Apoft. citat. ex. Vet. 1'. in fin. Bibl. vulg. edit. Sixt. V. & Clemen. VIII. Venet. 1616. Catharin. cpufc. de Script. Canon. Staple-ton de Autor. S. Script. Lib. II. c. iv. § 14. and Preface to the fecond book of Efdras, which was written or interpolated after the publication of the New Teftament, L 1 parages 514 PREFACE TO THE pailages in thefacred writings of the Old Teftament, which tlie evangelical and the apocryphal writers- might equally have had in view. But indeed, if any occaiional alluiion, or borrowed expreffions, could be proved, they would by no means eitabliih the authority of the apocryphal books ; which might be referred to, as were other books by the facred wri- ters, without any dehgn to confer on them a cha- racter of divine authority [i]. It is certain, that long after the time of our Sa- viour, the Hebrew canon coniilted but of twenty- two books [k] ; and that at this day the Jews adhere to the fame lift, though by feparating books for- merly united they increafe the number; and it is not probable, or conliftent with any authentic accounts, to fuppofe, that at any time before or after Chrift, the canon which the Jews fo religioufly refpected ihould have been altered by them. It is not pro- bable that they mould have admitted any addition after the death of Simon the Juft, who was the laft of the great fynagogue ;. or that, if fuch addition had been allowed, they Ihould have expunged thefe writings which contain nothing fo favourable to chrii- tianity as the prophetic books which they have fuf- [i] 2 Tim. iii. 8. Heb. xii. 21. Jude, ver. 14. Origen- Prol. in Cant. [k] Jofcph. cont. Apion. Eafeb. Hift. Ecclef. Lib. III. c. ix. R. Afarlas in Meor Enaim, p. 29, 141, 169, 1 7 j. R. Gedaliah Ben-Jechajah in Shalfhciefli Haccab. p. 68, 99, 104. R. Abrah. Zachus in Juchafin, p. 136. R. David Gantz in Tfomacli Da- vid, Part II. p. 10. R. Menace Ben Ifrael de Creatione, Prob* X. p. 45. fered APOCRYPHAL BOOKS, 515 fered to continue inviolate. Had the books been erafed before the time of Chrift, the facrilege mud have excited hisceni'ures; and fince theeftablifhment of the Golpel any endeavour to deface the canon muft have been dctecled and ex poled. These apocryphal books confututed no part of the Septuagint verfion of the fcriptures, as let forth by the tranflators under Ptolemy. 'It is fuppofed. that many of them at leaft were received by the Jewifh fynagogue eltablifhed at Jerufalem, which pofiibly might have derived its origin from the period of that tranflation [l]. From the Helleniftic Jews they were probably accepted by the Chriftian church ; but by whomfoever, and at whatever time they were communicated, it is certain that they were not re- ceived as canonical, or enrolled among the produc- tions of the infpired writers ; fince they are not in any of the earlier catalogues [m] ; and are excluded from the facred lift by the fathers of the Greek and Latin church, who flouriihed during the four firfi; centuries [n] ; though they are often cited by them as [l] Grabii Septuagint. Proleg. ad Lib. Hift. c. i. Prop. 24. [m] Conftit. Apoft. Lib. II. c. lvii. Canon Apoft. Can. ult. The prefent copies of the canons of the apoftles, which include the three books of Maccabees, are evidently corrupted, the ca- nons having formerly correfponded with the canon of the Council of Laodicea. Vid. Zonar. in Concil. Laodic. Can. 59. Eufeb. Hift. Ecclef. Lib. IV. c. xxv. Lib. V. c. xxiv. Lib. VI. c. xix„ Cofm's Scholiaft. Hift. ch. iv. feet. 4.$. [n] Dionyf. Hierarch. Ecclef. c. iii. Melito, ap. Eufeb. Lib. IV. c. xxv. Orig. ap. Eufeb, Hift. Ecclef, Lib. VI. LI?- c, xxv. 516 TIIEFACE TO THE as valuable and inftruetive works, and fometimes even as divine, and as fcripture in a loofe and popu- lar fenfe [o]. In the language of the primitive church they were ltiled ecclefiaitieal [p], as contra- diitinjniilhed from thofe infallible works which were c. xxv. Demonf. Evang. L. VIII. Eafil in Orig. Philocal. c. iii. Ruihn. Verf. Eufcb. Lib. VI. Tertull. cont. Marcicn, Carm. Lib. IV. c. vii. who reckoning Ruth and Lamentations. Separately, makes the number twenty-four. Kufeb. Demon. Evang. Lib. YIII. Athan. Epift. 39. Athan. Svnopf. Hilar. Prol. Explan. in Pfalrn. Cyrill. Catech. IV. Epiphan. Ha?res. S. cont. Epicur. & Hanes. 76. cont. Anomasos, & de Pond. & Menfur. Baiil. Phiioc. c. iii. Grcgor. Nazian. de ver. &r genuin. Lib. S. Script. Amphiloc. Epift. ad Seleuc. Chryfoft. Homil. IV. in Genef. & Homil. 8. in Epift. ad Hebra?. Hieron. in Prolog. Galeat. in Lib. Solom. and Praef. in Efdram, & in P.-iialip. Cofin's Schol. Mift. Canon VI. feet. 73. Ruffin. Symbol. Apoft. feci. $$; 36. [o] Origen cites 'l'obit and the Maccabees as fcripture. Lib. VIII. in Epift. ad Rom. de Princip. Lib. II. c. i. Ho* mil. 3. in Cant, as he docs likewife the Shepherd of Hermast and the Book of Henoch, without believing them to be cano- nical in the Uriel: fenfe of the word. Origen, indeed, be- lieved that the Shepherd of Hernias was infpired. Vid. Enar- rat. in Epift. ad Rom. p. 41 1. but this was his peculiar opinion. Vid. Philocal. c. i. The fathers in general who cite it as fcripture, ufe the term only in a popular fenfe. As Irenanis adv. Haeres. Lib. IV. & ap. Eufeb. Hift. Ecclcf. L. IV. c. 8. & Athanafius de Incarnat. verb. Tom. i. p. 55. who expirefilv fays that it is not ftricUy canonical. Epift. Pafch. Tom. ii. p. 39, 40. So Eufebius quotes Jofephus and Arifta?as, as well as the >Iaccabces. Vid. Pncp. Evang. Lib. X. c. viii. Demonft. Evang. Lib. IX. and X. Thus, alfo, Epiphanius calls the apoftolical conftitutions divine. Vid. Hares. 8. and 10. Can. Lib. V. c. v. [r] Ruffin. in Symbolum. canonized APOCRYPHAL BOOKS. ,517 canonized as unqueftionably inipired, and alfo from. thofe erroneous and pernicious writings which were ftigmatized and profcribed as apocryphal. Tup; eccleliaftical books, under which divifion were contained other productions belides thole now termed apocryphal, as the Shepherd of Hennas [q], the doctrine of the apoltles [u], and the lirit epiltle of Clement [s], though conlklered as human works, and as fubordinate to the facred books, were never- theless approved and read by the church as capable of furniihing much inilruction. The fathers quote them as pious and venerable books, and as defervedly held in great eftitnation: they fpeak of them in high and liyperbolical terms, as facred, as bearing fome re- femblance to the inipired writings, but not as certainly inipired, or as of fuincient authority in points of doc- trine ; for thole paflages which they are reprefented to cite from them as fuch, are cited in fpurious or doubtful books, or from limilar places in facred writ. Abundant teltimonies have been produced to prove that they were not received as canonical during the four lirft centuries; and they have never been gene- rally admitted into the canon of the Greek church ; nor were they judged canonical in the fame degree as the Law and the Prophets, even in the Weftern church, till the Council of Trent, in contempt of all authority and conliltency, pronounced them lb to be. [a] Eufefc. Hift. Ecclcf, Lib. III. c, iii. [r] This hook was probably the fame which is now called tyie apoltolical canons. Vid. Athan. Epfft. xxxix. . [s] Eufeb. Hilt, Eccl. Lib. III. c. xiv. Lib, IV, c, xxii, LI 3 In 518 PREFACE TO THE In the firft general council held at Nice, A. D. 32a, none of theie books appear to have been admitted as canonical [t] in any feme of that word ; and they certainly were not received by the Council of Laodicea, which was held about forty years after- wards, of which [t ] the canons were accepted into the code of the univerfal church [xj, and which acknowledged precileiy the fame books that we re- ceive. Is the fifth century St. Auftin [y] and the Couiir [t] Coin's Scholaft. ch. vi. feci:. 54. ful The Greek copies of this council reckon Baruch, the La. mentations, and the Epistle, as compofing one canonical book ■with Jeremiah ; and Athanafius and Cyril have been fuppofed to have received Baruch as canonical. But Baruch is mentioned in the catalogues •efcrrcd to, not probably as the apocryphal book, but for a mote full defcription of Jeremiah's work, in which Baruch as often mentioned, and in the writing of which he was employed ; and the epiiUe may mean that contained in the twenty. ninth chapter of Jeremiah's book. Vid. Cofin's Schol. Hift. ch. vi. feci. 61. and Preface to Baruch. [x] Concil. Caked. Can. 1. and Can. 163. Concil. Con- ftant. 6. in Trullo, Can. 2. This laft council confirmed alfo the council of Carthage, which admitted the apocrypha ; but it muft therefore have confirmed that canon only as it ad- mitted them in a fecondary fenfe, othervvife it could not have confirmed chat of Laodicea, which rejected them as not equal. Vid. Juftin. Novel. 131. Juftellus Prsef. in Cod. Ecclcf. Uni- yerfal. [y] Auguft. cont. Epift. Gaud. Donat. cap. xxiii. Epift. 61. ad Dulcit. de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVIII. c. xxxvi. Propter quo- i-undam martyrum paffiones vchementes atque mirabiles, qui an- tequam Chriftus veniflet in carnem ufque ad mortem pro ie^e Dei pertaverunt, ■ cil APOCRYPHAL BOOKS. 519 oil of Carthage [z] appear to have admitted (rather in deference to popular opinion, and in compliance with that reverence which had an fen from ufe [a]), moft of the apocryphal books [b] as canonical ; meaning, however, canonical in a fecondary fenfe ; as ufeful to be read ; and ftill with diftinction from thofe lacred and infpired books which were eftablifhed on the fanclion of the Jewiih canon, and on the tef- timony of our Saviour and his apoftles. After this time, other fathers [c] and councils [d] feem oc- [z] The fovty-feventh canon in which thofe books are confe- crated, is erroneoufly attributed to the third council of Carthage, which, as the titles fay, affembled in 397 ; for it muft have be- longed to a later council held during the time of Boniface, to whom it is referred ; and it correfponds nearly with a canon framed by an African council, held under the confulate of Hc- norius XII. and Theodofius VIII. in 419, except that it receives Baruch and Maccabees, which the latter omits. Vid. Cod. Canon, Ecclef. African. Can. 24. & Binii, & Juftelli, not. in Concil. Carthag. 3. Can. 47, 48. [a] Augaft. de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVIII. c. xxxvi. & c. xliii. Epift. 9 and 10. ad Hieron. " Quia a patribus," (fays the canon) " ifta accepimus legends." Vid. Colin's Scholaft. Hift. ch. vii. not. 82. [b] Neither Auftin, nor the canon attributed to this council, enumerate the fourth (that is, the fecond) bock of Efdras, Baruch, nor the Prayer of Manaffeth ; and the canon omits the books of Maccabees. Vid. Juftellus in Notis a Can. xxiv. [c] See alfo the fufpeeted epiftle of Innocent I. ad Exupcr. and the decree attributed to Gelafms, ad omnes Epifc. in Can. Vet. Ecclef. Rom. Edit. Par. 1609. Ifidor. Orig. Lib. VI. c. :. & Prooem. Sap. & Ecclus. [d] Sum. Caranze in Decret. 7. Concil. Florent. & Cofm's Scholaft. Hilt. ch. xvi. n. 159. The council of Florence was L 1 4 not 520 PREFACE TO THE cufionally to have confidered thefe books as canonical and inferior only to the facred writings; but always withdiftinction, and with cxprefs declarations of their inferiority when that d, Preface to Apocrypha, p. £i3, note 2. canonical 5!lG GF THE FIRST BOOK OF ESDRAS. canonical in the*fame fenfe : that is, as an ecclefiaf- tical book, attributed to Ezra ; and which might even be thought to contain a prophetic paiTage, if by truth [k] defcribed as conquering all things, (hould be underftood Chriit. The book is alio cited by others of the fathers as a work entitled, the Fir ft Book of Efdras : as afcribed to him, and as a re- ipeclable work [l] ; but never as of equal authority with the canonical books [m]. St. Jerom without icruple pronounced this and the following books to be vifionary and fpurious [n] ; and it was reje&ed even by the Council of Trent, though it was fuffered to continue in the printed editions as the fecond or third book of Ezra, till the publication of the Bible by Sixtus the Fifth, when it was placed apart from the canonical books [o] ; and notwithflanding Genebrard [p] itill maintained its authenticity, the Komanifts in general confider it as apocryphal. It [k] Chap. i. 38. & Auguft. de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVIII. e. xxxvi. |"l] Cyprian Ep. 74. ad Pompeian. Clemens Alex. Strom. Lib. II. Juftin Martyr Dial, cum Tryphon, p. 297. Bafil Epift. ad Chilon. A than. Orat. III. cont. Arian. Auguft. de Doft. Chrift. Lib. II. c. viii. [$a] Joh. Driedo in Cat. Script. Lib. I. c. iv. ad Diffic. 4. [n] Hieron. Epift. ad Domnion. & Rogatian. Ncc Apo- cryphorum tertii & quarti (Efdrse) Somniis deleftetur, fays Jerom. [o] In fomc old copies of the Latin Bibles, this and the fue- ceeding book, a; alfo the Prayer of Manallcth, were marked with a iion legitun as an intimation that they were not to be pubiickly read in the church. [p] Genebrard in Chron, ad An, 3730, p. 95, 96. certainly Or THE FIRST BOOK OF LSD Li AS. 5C2? certainly could not have been written by Ezra, whole authentic work it contradicts in many particulars; and it has no pretentions to be revered as the pro- duction of an inipircd peribn, although great part of it be extracted from the facred writings. The name of Ezra was at all times particularly reverenced by the Jews, who were accuftomed in honour of his memory to remark, that he was worthy that the Law mould have been given by his hands unto Ifrael, if Moil's had not been before him. In coniequence of this reputation, numberlefs fpurious works were publiihed at different times under his name ; and however they might at firit, whether produced before or after Chriit, have borne the pal- pable marks of forgery, Mere yet received by the credulous and unlearned. If the boldnefs of the im- pofture provoked oppofition, this was foon wearied and forgotten ; and the books gradually rofe into reputation under the fanction of a great name [q]. The Firft Book of Eidras includes a period of about ninety years. The fhort hiftorical fketch of [q] Befides the books afcribed to Ezra in our Bibles, and other writings before mentioned, vid. Preface to Ezra, p. 2ir, Picus Mirandula profeiTes to have read the Cabala of Efdras, written in feventy books, and informs us, that they contained many myfteries relating to Chriftianity. Sixtus the Fourth is faid to have projected a tranflation of them, but only three were d at his death; the learned difpute concerning the cha- racter, and even the exiftqnce of thefo books. Vid. Mirand. Apol. p. 82. 2 Efd. xiv. 46. Fabricii Codex Pi"Vudepig. Petr. Crinit de Honeft. Difcip. Lib. XXV. c iii. Sixt. Senens. Sib, Lib. II. Epiphan. de Pond. Sc Menf. £ io. the ->28 OF THE FIRST BOOK OF ESD&AS; the time which intervened between the celebration of the Paffover by Jofiah, and the captivity of the Jews, as furniftied in the firft chapter of this book, is taken chiefly from the thirty- fifth and thirty-fixth chapters of the Second Book of Chronicles. The ftrange but lively ftory of the three competitors for the fa- vour of Darius, which appears to have been intro- duced to recommend and cmbellifli the character of Zerubbabei [r], might have been founded on fome popular traditions, as it is related by Joiephus; but it is certainly fabulous in moft of its naviculars, and could not concern Zerubbabei, who at the period affigned was at Jerufalem [s]. The reft of the work, which is chiefly compiled from the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, is disfigured by many improbable and contradictory additions, and by many circumftances which appear to have been defignedly introduced in order to difguiie and vary the relation [t]. It contains, perhaps, nothing ex* ceptionable with refpccl to do&rine or precept ; but its accounts are fo incorporated with falfehood, that the compilers of our Liturgy have not appointed any feleclions from it to be read in the iervicc of the [r] Chap. iii. iv. v. [s] Ezra ii. 2. Jofephus erroneoufly fays, and perhaps on the authority of this book, that Zerubbabei returned from Jerufalem to Darius. Vid. de Antiq. Lib. XL c. iv. [t] Comp. chap. ii. 15. with Ezra ii. 2. Chap. iv. 48. with Ezra v. 13. Chap. iv. 43, 46. with Ezra vi. 1. Chap. iv. 44, 57. with chap. vi. 18, 19. and Ezra i. 7— *-u. Chap. v. 40. withNehem. viii. 9. Chap. v. 47, 48. with Ezra i. 1 — 3, &c church. OF THE FIRST EOOtC OF ESDRAS. 59,9 church. Many particulars, indeed, interfperfed through the book, and too numerous here to be produced [e], are utterly inconliitent with probabi- lity, chronology, and the relations of icripture. From fictitious circumftances, however, fbme in- ftruction may be drawn, though we cannot but re- gret that the author of the fine encomium on truth [x], fliould have fo departed from its principles as to write under the aflumed character of infpiration. [u] Calmet & Arnald. [x] Chap. iv. 38 — 40. The learned Thorndike by truth here fpoken of, underft:mds the truth which God by his law had declared to his people, and fuppofes Zerubbabel to have intended to encourage the King to protecl it by countenancing the building of the temple. Vid. Thorndike's Epilogue, ch. xxxiv. p. zlz. M m or [ 530 ] OF THE SECOND BOOK of ESDRAS. SOME writers have conceived that this work was competed by the fame peribn that aiTumed the character of Ezra in the preceding book ; but though it be equally uncertain by whom and at what period each book was produced, there is reafon to think that they were not both derived from one peribn, fmce they differ in itile, and have no connection or agreement with each other. Each author, however, has borrowed the fame title; and each has inferted a genealogy in the character of Ezra : with fome dif- ference, indeed, in the accounts, and both with vari- ation from the lineage furnimed by the infpired writer in his authentic book [a]. [a] The accounts in i Efdras viii. i, 2. and in 2 Efdras i. 1 — 3. differ from each other, and both difagree with the genea- logy inferted in Ezravil. l« They were, however, all defigncd for the fame perfon, as is evident from the general agreement of the fix fir ft names ; and probably the variations arife only from accidental corruptions, or from different modes of caleula. tion : indeed, the author of the Second Book o{ Efdras enumerates three names more in this genealogy than do the author* of the r.rccrdij^g books. TH3 Q OF THE SECOND BOOK OF ESDRAS. 531 The Second Book of Efdras is not now to be found in any Hebrew or Greek manuicripts. It is fuppofed to have been originally written in the Greek language; but is extant only in a few Latin copies [b], and in an Arabic verfion [c]. It is generally maintained that the work could not have been the genuine production of Ezra, as it feems to bear fome intrinfic marks of having been compoled after his time, and, indeed, after the period at which the pro- phetic fpirit is reputed to have ceafed [d] ; notwith- standing alio the fine fpirit of piety that pervades the work, and the author's confident aflumption of the prophetic cliaracter, his pretenfions to infpiration [b] Calmet dates that it was firft printed in the Latin edition of Nuremberg, publiihed in 1521. Differ t. fur le Quatrieme Livre d'Efdras, note l. [c] In the Arabic verfion it is called the Firft Book of Ef- dras. This verfion differs much from the Latin copies, and has many interpolations ; one particularly concerning the intermediate "ftate of the foul. [d] Chap. ii. 39, 40. The author in the lafl of thefe verfes fpeaks of Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi ; though the two former did not probably flouriih as Prophets till after the re- turn from the captivity, and Maiachi not till above 100 years after the decree of Cyrus. Ezra, indeed, if he had been the author of the book, might, as fpeaking prophetically, have mentioned even in the captivity thefe Prophets by name ; but befides other reafons that tend to prove that the work was written after his time, it may be remarked, that the Prophets are here enumerated, not according to the order of the Hebrew canon, but according to that of the Septuagint. Vid. alfo, chap. xv. 46. where Afu is mentioned, a name probably not known in the time of Ezra. M m 2 have S3% OF THE SECOND BOOK OF ESDRAS. have not been admitted. It is not, indeed, probable that an infpired writer would have claimed a name to which he was not entitled; or have interfperied in his work thole extravagant conceits and apparent inconiiftencies which occafionally disfigure and de- grade this production. The book, it is true, contains much fublime initruc~tion ; many animated exhorta- tions to righteouiheis, and many lentiments not un- worthy of the 1 acred fource from whence they are related to have flowed. It represents Ezra as com- manded to remonftrate with the people for their dis- obedience; and on their contempt of God:s words, as addrcfiing bimfelf to the heathen, whom he en- joins to prepare for that " everlaiting light" which ihould mine upon them. It defcribes the Prophet as pleading with fubmiffive piety to remove the afflic- tions of his captive countrymen ; as anxioufly en- quiring why the chofen people of the Almighty mould fuffer feverer punifhments for their fins than the hea- then for whom they were feemingly rejected [e].; as lamenting the effects of entailed corruption [f] ; as bewailing the evil propenfities and condition of men, of whom a few only appear to be marked out and diftinguimed as objects of divine favour [o]. He is faid to have been honoured with vifions and [e] Chap. iii. 28. iv. 23 — 31. [f] Chap. iii. 20 — 22. iv. 30 — 32. vii. 48. The author fpeaks, indeed, of the extent of Adam's tranfgreflion with a clearnefs that argues an acquaintance with the evangelical account of its effects. [c] Chap, iv, \2> vii, 4 — 54, ix. 15, 16, divine OF THE SECOND BOOK OF ESDRAS. 533 divine communications in anfwer to thofe enquiries. The boaited revelations are deicribed in a lofty and prophetic ftile : in a manner iimilar to that adopted by Daniel, Ezekiel, and St. John. They difcoun- tenance with becoming dignity the prefumptuous curiofity and complaints of man [h] ; contain very elevated delcriptions of God's, attributes [i] ; and reft the equity of his proceedings on the projected decifions of a future judgment. They impart conlb- latory affurances of returning favour, and reprefent in an interefting vifion, Jerufalem re-eftablilhed on its foundations [k]. The angel likewife, in thefe pre- tended viiions, reveals many ftriking prophecies rela- tive to the Memah [l]; the deftruclion of the Roman empire [m]; and the fate of Egypt ; of Babylon [n], and [h] Chap. iv. 5 — ii. comp. with John iii. 12. [1] Chap. vii. 62 — 70. viii. 20 — 23, 39. xvi. 54 — 63. [kJ Chap. ix. x. 27, &c. [l] Chap. ii. 34 — 48. & infra, p. 540, & notes. [mJ Chap. xi. xii. The prophecies rel.tivc to the eagle might have been written by an uninfpired writer acquaint.-d with Daniel's book, either before or after Chrift. The prophecv con. cerning the lion, which denounced deftruclion to the eagie, is faid by the Arabic tranflator, to be " a prophecy of the Lord the -Meffiah." ■ Vid. chap. xi. 37. [n] Chap. xv. xvi. In fome ancient copies thefe two I a ft .chapters feem to conftitute a diftinft book, called the Fifth Book of Efdras, and divided into feven chapters. Lee thinks that they have all the characters of antiquity, and refemble the prophetic ftile. They fpeak of the deftruclion of nations, and of fome general troubles from which the faithful only fhould be delivered. The twenty-ninth and follow:ng verfes ©f the fifteenth chapter, have been thought to relate to the M m 3 viftories 5$4 OF THE SECOND BOOK OF £SD»A:- and of other nations, befides others of verv obfcure and uncertain interpretation [o]. So far there appears nothing incompatible with the character of Ezra ; and we ihould be inclined to confider the work as his production, or at leaft as a compilation of ibme fragments written by him, were it not for the deficiency of external fanctions ; and for the intermixture of particulars feemingly incon- fiftent with the character and period of that Prophet. The author's pretenfions, indeed, to infpiration, as well as to the name of Ezra, are deftroyed by many ialieand abfurd particulars [p], which are fo incor- porated with the work, that they cannot always be confidered as lubfequent interpolations. The book was never admitted into the Hebrew canon ; and there is no fufhcient authority to prove that it was victories of the Saracens ; and Lee by dragons underftands thofe who lived in dens and caverns of the earth. Vid. Lee, p. 45 and 156, with note annexed to Fifth Book of Efdras. None of the pretended prophecies, however, in this book, are fo clear and original (except thofe relating to the MefTiah, which were probably written after the time of Chrift) that they might not have been "framed by an uninfpired writer converfant with the prophetic books. [o] Chap. v. 1 — 13. vi. 7 — 28. [p]^ Chap. iv. 45 — 52. v. 5. vii. 11. xiii. 46 — 47. Bafnage Hift. of the Jews, B. VI. ch. ii. Chap. xiv. ie — 12. St. Cvprian and others, who believed that the end of the world was near at hand in their time, are fuppofed to have derived the notion from this and other paflages in this book. Vid. Cyprian ad Demetrian. George Hakewill on Providence, London, 1627. fol. Freinfhem Orat, VII. and IX. See other idle tales in chap. xiv. 21 — 48. ever OF THE SECOND BOOK OE ESDRAS, 5$y -ever extant in the Hebrew language [<*]. . Its pre- tended prophecies are not produced in evidence by Chriftian writers, ftriking as fuch teftimony mult have been, if genuine ; and the book was never publickly or generally acknowledged either in the Greek or Latin church [r]; nor was it ever mierted in the facred catalogue, by either councils or fa- thers ; but is exprefsly reprefented as apocryphal by St. Jerom, who defcribes it as rejected by the church [s]. The many wild and profperous fancies with which the work abounds, feem to prove that it was the production of a Rabbinical JewIVj. The learned Mr. Lee is inclined to think that it was written or compiled by an Egyptian Jew before the time of (Thrift ; and it has been obferved in fupport of this opinion, that it is cited or referred to as a Jewifh [q] Lee fuppofes that Picus Mirandula, and Leo Judaeus, had feen, and relates, that Petrus Galatinus had heard of an Plebrew copy ; as alfo, that Scaliger had boafted of having the book or bosks of Efdras in the Syriac ; but the preemptions of its having ever exifted in the Hebrew are but flender* Lee's Di(T. p. 152. [r] Bib. Sac. Sixt. V. and Clement. VIIL [s] Hieron. Epift. ad Domnion & Rogat. & Przef. in Lib. Ei3. In anfvver to Vigilantius, who had produced fome parages from this book, he fays, " Tu Vigilans dormis, et dormiens fcribis t et proponis mihi Librum Apocryphum qui fub nomine Efdra?, a te, tt fimilibus tui legitur." Vid. alfo, Athan. Synop. de Lib. EfH. Wolfius Bib. Heb. torn. i. n, 1768, p. 941, & torn, ii, p. 194., 196, 209. [t] Chap. iii. 6, 19. v. 5, 52—55. vi, 42, 44, 49—52, 55. Raynold's Prseleft, 27. M m 4 book 556 OF THE SECOXD BOOK OF ESDRAS. book by very ancient writers [u] ; and that it may be fuppofed to treat of that traditional and myfte- rious knowledge which was laid to have been de- rived as an oral explication of the Law from Mofes; and which was taught in the Alexandrian fchool of the Jews. Mr. Lee obferves, that in many parti- culars it refembles other apocryphal books, un- doubtedly written before the time of our Saviour [x] ; and that there is fome ground for fuppofing that the book of Enoch [y], and that of the fhep- herd of Ilermas [z], might have proceeded from the fame author as the prefent work. On [u] Tertul!. Lib. de Habit. Mul. c. iii. & cont. Marcion. Carm. Lib. IV. c, vii. Clemens Alex. Strom. Lib. IV. & Lib. I. & Eufeb. Lib. VI. c. xii. Ambrofe de bono Mortis, c. x. n. 45, & Lib. II. in Lucam. St. Ambrofe cites ch. vii. 32. as fcripture, and. he profeffes to cite on this occafion from Ezra ; in order to ihew that the heathens had drawn their belt maxims from our books. [x] As to the two laft chapters of Tobit, and like wife the books of Baruch and Wifdom. The book bears, likewife, fome reftmblance to pafl'ages in the ancient Targums, as thofe of Jonathan and Onkeios. See Kidder's Demonftration of the Mefliah, and Allix's Defence of the Unity and Diftinftion of the Divine Nature. [y j This book is cited by St. Jude, ver. 14. if not by St* Peter; and an interpretation is borrowed from it by the Targu, mift Jonathan. It is f ippofed to have been known in the age of Alexander Polyhiftor, above an hundred years before the birth of Chrift, or even earlier. [z] The virions of Hermas much refemble thofe of Efdras in many linking particulars. They are thought to have beer) written about feventy-nve years afier the vulgar aera. The book OP THE SECOND BOOK OF ESDRAS. 537 On a fuppofition that this work was written before the period of Chriit, we muft admit that thofe par- ticulars which appear to be prophetic of circum- ftances relative to the Mefiiah and his kingdom, were collected from an acquaintance with the infpired books of the Old Teltament ; or that the work has been interpolated by fome writer who lived under the Gofpel dilpenlation [a]. But it exhibits, in every part, fuch a manifeft refemblance to the doc- trines, i'entiments, and expreffions, of the evangelical writers ; and correfponds lb much with puffages of the New Teftament as to particulars interwoven in the contexture of the book ; that we muft fuppofe it to have been written after the publication of the Gofpel, unlefs we admit that the evangelical writers book of Hermas was highly efteemcd in the Greek, and hardly known in the Weftern church, though now extant only in Latin. Vid. Lee's Difc. p. i 38. [a] Mr. Lee feems to infinuate that the book might have been corrupted by the Cerinthians, or even by Cerinthus him- ielf, who in his religious fyfte.n, combined with the doftrines of Chrift the opinions of the Jews, and the errors of the jGnoftics. Some, indeed, have imagined, that this book is the very apocalypfe of th it heretic referred to by the ancients, as it feems to contain fome notions favourable to the Cerinthiaa herefy ; and Cerinthus is related to have written a kind of apo- calypfe upon the model of St. John's Revelation. Vid. Lee's Diff. p. 87. Dr. Allix fuppofed that the fecond book of Efdras was the production of a Jew who had adopted the opinions of Montanus : a rigid and enthufu.ftic feftary of the fecond century, who predicted calamities and deftrudtion to the Roman empire. Vid. Allix de Ufu 8c Proliant. Num. Moiheim's Ecclef. Hift. Cent, 2. Part II. § 23. have .538. 01' THE SECOND EOOK Of ESDRA3, have borrowed more from this apocryphal boo!:, than from almoft any canonical book of the Old Teftament, fmce in none except in the Pfalms can we difcover fuch frequent coincidence of thought and expreffion [b] ; and the author, indeed, treats fo clearly of particulars brought to light by the Gofpel difpenfation j pourtrays fo cxpreffively and [b] Comp. chap. i. 30. with Matt, xxiii. 37. Chap. i. 32. with Matt, xxiii. 34. and Luke xi. 49, 50. where the evangelift refers probably to fome prophecy now loft. Chap. i. 33. with Luke xiii. 35, &c. Chap. i. 37. with John xx. 29. Chap. ii. 8, 9. with Mark vi. 1 1, &c. Chap. ii. 11. with Luke xvi. 9. Chap. ii. 12. with Matt. xi. 28. Chap. ii. 13. with Matt. vii. 7. and Matt. xxiv. 22, and chap. xxv. 34. and Mark xiii. 37. Chap. ii. 16. with John v. 28, 29. Chap. ii. 26. with John jcvii. 12. Chap. iv. 21. with John iii. 31, 32. Chap. iv. 28. with Matt. xiii. 30. Chap. iv. 30. with Matt. xiii. 30, 39. Chap. iv. 31, 32. with Mark iv. 28, 29. Chap. v. 1. with Luke xviii. 8. Chap. v. 2. with Matt. xxiv. 12. Chap. v. 2, 3. with John xv, 1. Chap. vi. 23. with Matt. xxiv. 31. Chap. vi. 24. with Luke xii. 53. Chap. vi. 25. with Matt. xxiv. 13. Chap. vi. 26. with Matt. xiv. 28. Chap. vii. 7. with Matt. vii. 14. Chap. vii. 55. with Matt. xiii. 43. Chap. viii. 3. with Matt. xx. 16. and vii. 14. Chap. viii. 22. with John xvii. 17. Chap. ix. 3. Matt. xxiv. 6, 7. xiii. 32. with John vii. 19. Chap. ix. 37. with Matt. v. 18. Chap. xv. 4. with John iii. ■$&. and viii. 24. Chap. xvi. 18. with Matt, xxiv. 8. Chap. xvi. 53, 54, 76. with Luke xvi. 15. Chap. iii. 11. with 1 Pet. iii. 20. Chap. vii. 64. with 2 Pet. iii, 15. Chap. viii. 39. with 1 Pet. i. 17. Chap. viii. $9. with 2 Per. iii. 9. Chap. ix. 15. with 1 Pet. iv. 18. and Matt. vii. 13. Chap. ii. 41. with 2 Theft, ii. 13. Comp. alfo, chap. v. 4. with Rev. viii. 10, 12. See, alfo, the book of Revelation paflim, and many other collated references in Lee, p. 124 — 12J. cha- OF THE SECOXD BOOK OF ESDRAS. 539 characreriftically our Saviour, who is imaged out, as " the Sou of God, exalted on Mount Sion [c], crowning and giving palms to them who having confefled the name of God, had put off the mortal clothing j1' describing likewiie the characler and com- preheniive defign of Chrift's kingdom [n], and the death of our Saviour [e] ; and fpeaking lb diitinc~tly of a refurreclion and future judgment [f], that he muft have been enlightened by divine infpiration, if he had lived previoufly to the promulgation of the Gofpel doctrines. That the book was written after the appearance of Chrift, will be deemed farther probable if we confider the particulars of that paffage in which the author declares, in the name of the Almighty, that " Jefus [g], his Son, ihould be revealed with thole that be with [c] Chap. ii. 34 — 36. coir.p. with John x. 11 — 14. and Matt. xi. 29. Efd. ii. 42 — 48. comp. with Matt. x. 32. xvi. 16. Luke i. 35. 1 Pet. v. 4. and z Cor. xv. §3. Efd. vii. 28. comp. with Luke i. 31. Efd. xiii. 1 — 38. comp. with,' Matt. xxiv. 30. and xxv. 31. Vid. alfo, Efd. xiv. 9. and xv. 6. [d] Chap. ii. 34 — 41. Chap. ii. 18, 19. where, by the twelve trees and twelve fountains were defigned, probably, the twelve apoftles. [e] Chap. vii. 29. [f] Chap. ii. 16, 23, 31. iv. 42. vi. 20 — 28. vii. 31 — 3^. comp. with John v. 25, 29. and Matt. xvi. 27. and xxv. 31. Vid. alfo, chap. vii. 42 — 45, 55. viii. 61. ix. 10 — 13. xiv. 35-. [g] Chap. vii. 28, 29, The name of Jefus is wanting in the Arabic Paraphrafe ; but it muft have been in the ancient manufcripts, as particularly in the Latin copies in the time of £40 OF THE SECOXD BOOK OF E5DRAS. with him ; and that they that remain mould rejoice within four hundred years ; that after thefe years mould his Son Chrift die, and all men that have life ;" for it is not probable that an uninipired writer, however converi'ant with the prophetic books, ihould have been able to etch out a prophecy fo clear and defcriptive. There appears then to be fome reafon, on a col- lective confideration of thefe circumftances, to fup- pofe that the book, or at leaft that the greateft part of it, was produced after the promulgation of the Gofpel. The work is, however, of too mixed and myftenous character to authorize any pofitive deter- mination. It is a collection of pretended prophecies ; cabaliftical fancies ; and allufions to evangelical par- ticulars. Amidit fpurious fabrications, and paffages tranfcribed from the Gofpel, it may contain frag- ments of works written before the time of Chrift [h] ; and many writers have confidered it as a com- of St. Ambrofc, which was about 700 years prior to the fup. pofed date of the Laude n manufcript. This name, though fynonimous with the word Redeemer, is no where applied to the Meffiah in the Old Teftament. Vid. Matt. i. 21. The word Chrift is fynotrmous with that of the Mefliah, or the Anointed ; which words are often ufed by the Prophets in pre. diclions refpt cling our Saviour. Vid. 1 Sam. ii. 35". Pfalm ii. 2. Dan. ix. 25. The Seventy in thefe places tranflate Majhiachy by Xfic-1'©'. [h] Mr. Lee conceives the two firft chapters to be an extrin- iic work. He confiders them as a fragment of fome book held {acred among the Egyptian Jews, though not admitted into the canon. They are not in the Arabic verfion, nor in fome of the moft ancient Latin copies. Lee's DifT. p. 54. pilation OF THE SECOND BOOK OF ESDRAS. 541 pilation of pieces, of which fome, at leaft, may have been the genuine production of Ezra, Among the various opinions that have been enter- tained concerning this book, fome have imagined that it might have been compoied ibon after the deitruc- tion of Jerufalem, by a Chriftian writer ; who, as was cuftomary among the ancients, might have affumed a borrowed title, not with intention to impoie on the world : but to exhibit under the name of Ezra, as that of a great doctor of the Law, a fpecimen of what might be laid on the principles of the Jewifh lynagogue, concerning the more inward and fpiritual religion that had been concealed from common ob- iervation under the veil of Moles ; and that the au- thor might defign to develop the more fecret vvifdom of God in his government of the world, and of his church ; with the more notable events relative to the introduction and eftablimment of the kingdom of the Median, in order to facilitate the reception of the Gofpel and its myfteries. It is probable, that the author's intention was t$ promote the fuccefs of Chriitianity ; and Calmet has conjectured, that he lived during the time of fome perlecution of the Chriftian?, whom he appears de- firous of exciting to faith and fortitude [i]. But however pious the defign of the author, it will not apologize for the guilt of endeavouring to impoie a fpurious, for an infpired work on the world ; and for the preemption of i'peaking in the name and with the [i] Chap. ii. 44. — 47. authority 542 OF THE SECOND BOOK OF ESDRAS, authority of God. The work, however, may be ad- mired as a production of the moft curious and in- tereiiing character ; as valuable for many devout and inftructive fentiments, and for precepts modelled on the perfection of chriiiian morality [k]. Jt may be admired, likewife, for the beauties of its compofition : for its lively and elegant illuftrations, and for that majeftic eloquence which breaks forth through the difad vantages of a barbarous Latin tranflation. The RomilTi church, though it admit not its canonical authority, has adopted fome pail ages from it'into its offices [l] ; and it is properly iufrered to continue in our Bibles as a profitable book if difcreetly and cau- tioufly ufed, but not as having any authority in point of doctrine. It may be obferved, however, in vin- dication of the book, even in that refpecfc, at lealt in one inftance, that the Roman Catholics who have endeavoured to countenance thenotions of purgatory by the authority of this writer, have perverted his words ; for the paffage in which he fpeaks, agreeably to the representation of St John [m], of the fouls of the righteous, as let apart in expectation of God's final judgment, makes no mention of purification, or of their being placed in a ftate of expiatory pu- niftiment. Clemens Alexandrinus has quoted [n] in his [k] Chap. ii. 20 — 23. iv. 7. [l] 2 Efdras ii, 36, 37. Miffa in Fer. poft Pentacoftem* Miff. Rom. p. 316. [m] Chap. iv. 35^—41. comp. with Rev. yi. 9 — 11. [n] Clem. Alex. Strom. Lib. I. p. 330. explication OF THE SECOND BOOK OF ESDRAS. 5\3 explication of Daniel's prophecy, a paflage as from the book of Efdras, which is no longer to be found in this or the preceding book ; if it ever exifted in this, it muft have tended ftill farther to prove that it was written after the appearance of Chrift. The words of Clemens may be thus rendered : " For it is written in Efdras, and thus the Meffiah, the Prince, the King of the Jews, was in Jcrufalem, after the accomplifhment of the feven weeks ; and in the fixty-two weeks all Juda?a was in peace, and was without wars ; and the Lord our Chrift, the moft Holy, being come, and having fulfilled the viiion and prophecy, (Prophet) was anointed in the fietftj by the Spirit of his Father/" tr t 54+ ] OF THE' BOOK of TOBIT. THIS Book was probably written by, or ad leaft compiled from the memoirs of Tobit and Tobias [a] : whom Raphael, the angel, had commanded to record the events of their lives [b]. The work appears to have been begun by Tobit ; who in the Greek, Hebrew, and Syriac editions, fpeaks in the firft perfon to the fourth chapter ; and by whom other parts in the book, as the prayer in the thirteenth chapter, are faid to have been written; what he left unfiniihed was probably completed by his fon ; the two laft verfes of the book being after- wards added by fome compiler [c], who digefted the materials into their prcfent form. [a] The Greek calls the father T«£r,r (Tobct) or T»£»r (Tobit) and the fon Tw£ias (Tobias) in the Chaldee both are called n»llD (Tobija). [b] Chap. xii. 20. [c] It is called /3»&\o,- rw Myty, " The Book of the Words" «r of the afts of Tobit, ch, i, 1, It OF THE BOOK OF TOBIT. 545 It is uncertain, \\ hether this work were originally written in the Hebrew or in the Chaldaic lang;ua2;e [d], with both of which Tobit and his family mult have been well acquainted. The Hebrew copies publilhed by Munfter and Fagius, appear to be tran- llations comparatively modern [eJ ; and as the book was extant in the Chaldaic language in the time of St. Jerom, it is pofiible that it was originally written in that language, though no Chaldaic copy be now extant. The moft ancient copy that is known to exiit, is a Greek verfion which was probably made by fome Helleniltical Jew [r], and before the time of Theodofion, as it is quoted by Polycarp [g] ; [d] Origen profefies to have heard that the Jews had Tobit and* Judith in their language among the apocryphal books. Vid. Epift. ad African, but he probably meant in the Chaldaic language, which is fometimes called the Hebrew. The names of the angels, and of the months, are of Chaldaean derivation ; but thefe might have been equally ufed by a Jew, as the Chal- daean expreffions and reckonings were generally adopted during and after the captivity by the Jews. Vid. Berefchit. Rabb. & Talmud Hier. Huet. Dem. Evan. Prop. 4. [e] The Hebrew obtained by Fagius from Conftantinople, and publilhed by him, feems to have been translated from the Greek ; that of Munfter, which he profefies to have found in Germany, was probably rendered chiefly from the Vulgate. They both, however, vary from the copies from which they are fuppofed to have been refpectively tranflared. Huet was in pof- feflion of an Hebrew manufcript, which differed from both ; and efpecially from that of Fagius. Vid. Fabric. Bib. Grasc. Huet. Prop. 4. & Calmet. Pref. fur Tobie. [f] Hieron. Praef. in Tobiarn, & Whifton's Sac. Hill. vol. i. [g] Polycarp. Epift. ad Philip. This Greek tranaanon was compofed, however, long after the period affigned to the N n biftory, 546 OF THE BOOK OF T0BIT. from this our Engliih tranflation, and probably the Syriac verfion was made : as alio the' Latin verfion, which was in ufe before the time of St. Jerom. All the verlions of this book vary lb much from each other, that they muft have fuffered many cor- ruptions. St. Jerom's Latin verlion efpecially, which he profefies to have tranflated from the Chaldee, differs fo much from the Greek, that it has been fuppofed to have been drawn from a more extended hiftory of Tobit [n]. But if we confider, that St. Jerom was at that time by his own account ignorant of the Chaldee, and that he executed the work by the affiftance of a Jew in one day [i], we may at- tribute many of the adventitious particulars to in- accuracy, and to the redundancies that muft have refulted from verbal circumlocution. The Greek is probably moft entitled to refpect, and on that ac- count it was preferred by the tranflators of our Bible [k] ; and, indeed, there are fome miftakes in the hiftory, for the fixth verfe of the eighth chapter is tranfcribed almoft verbatim from the Septuagint verfion of Gen. ii. 18. [h] Fabian Juftiniani fuppofed that there muft have been two originals ; and Serarius contends for three. But the varieties arife from corruptions in the copies. Vid. Juftin. Praef. in Tob. He mentions an Arabic verfion which correfponds much with the Vulgate, and which was probably made from it. [i] " Unius Diei laborem arripui, & quicquid ille mihi Hebraicis verbis exprefiit, hoc ego accito notario fermonibus Latinis expofui," fays St. Jerom, vid. Prsef. in Tobiam. We are not therefore to look for accuracy in a tranflation fo made. [k] Coverdale's tranflation appears to have been made from that of St. Jerom, altered as in the Vulgate. Latin, 1 OF THE BOOK OF TOBIT. 547 Latin, which if not rejected, would entirely deftroy all the authority which the book may claim, and make it utterly inconfiltent with the times to which it is affigned. This, however, is canonized by the church of Rome. The book, if it ever exifted in the Hebrew lan- guage, was certainly never in the Hebrew canon, and has no pretentions to be conlidered as the pro- duction of an infpired writer. It was probably com- pofed after the doling of the canon ; but perhaps before the time of our Saviour, though as far as may be argued from the filenCe of Philo and Jofe- phus, it does not feem to have been known to thofe hiftorians, and it is not cited in the New Teftament. It is not to be found in the moft ancient catalogues of the canonical books, as furniflied by Melito ; Origen ; and the Council of Laodicea ; and it muft be added, that Athanafius [l], Cyril of Jerufalem [m], Gregory Nazianzen [n], Epiphanius [o], Hi- lary [p], and St. Jerom [q], exclude it from the facred code. Though Tobit has no canonical authority, it is a book refpectable for its antiquity and contents. In the Alexandrian manufcript, and in the bell editions of the Septuagint, it is placed among the hagiogra- [l] Athan. Epift. feftal. & in Synop. [m] Cyrill. Catech. 4. [n] Greg. Nazianz. Carm. de Veris Scrip, [o] Epiphan. de Pond. & Menf. [p] Hil. in Prolog. Pfalm. [q] Hieron, Prol. Gal. Prsef. in Tob. in Prov. &c. paffim. N n 2 phical 548 OF THE BOOK OF TOBIT. phical books ; and it is cited from the Greek with great refpect by Polycarp [at], Clemens Alexandrinus [s], Chrylbftoin, and other writers [t] of confider- able authority ; and fome Councils, indeed, as thofe of Carthage [u], Florence, and Trent [x], efteemed it canonical ; upon an erroneous notion of its being dictated by infpiration, and upon a fuppoiition that it was claiTed by the Jews among the Hagiographa as a work of fecondary rank [y]. Houbigant imagines, that the only reafon why it was not admitted into the canon was, becaufe being a private hiftory, there were probably but few copies; and that theie being kept at Ecbatana in Media, [r] Polycarp. Epift. ad Philipp. [s] Clemen. Alex. Strom. I. [t] Clem. Conftit. Apoft. Lib. I. c. i. Lib. III. c. xv. Lib, VII. c. ii. Irentsus Infinuat. Lib. I. c. xxx. Cyprian, paffim. Auguft. de Doft. Chrift. Lib. III. c. xviii. Ambrof. Lib. dc Tobia. Hilar, in Pfalm cxxix. n. 7. Bafil. Homil. de Avarit. [u] Concil. Carthag. III. An. 397. c. xlvii. alfo Concil. Hippon. A. 393, Can. 38. Vid. alfo, P. Innocent I. Epift. 3. ad Exuper. & Cofin's Schol. Hift. § 83. [x] Concil. Trid. Seff. 4. [v] Hieron. Prol. Gal. Praef. in Proverb. & in Tobit. In the prefent copies of this laft preface, St. Jerom is reprefented to have faid that the Jews reckoned Tobit among the Hagio- grapha ; but the word Hagiographa is probably, as many of the Romanifts allow, a corruption, and fubftituted for Apocrypha. Thofe, however, who contend for the authenticity of the expref- fion, mull at leaft admit, that Hagiographa is ufed only in an inferior fenfe ; for St. Jerom in the fame place affirms, that the Jews excluded it from the catalogue of the divine writings, and cenfured him for tranllating a book not in their canon. Vid, Cofin's Schol. Hift. S 73. p. 83. where OF THE BOOK OF TOEIT. 549 where Tobias retired, the work though then written, might not have been known to Ezra : but, indeed, if it had been then written, and known to the com- piler of the canon, it could have had no title to be clafled among the canonical books as of the fame authority with them. The author does not pretend to prophefy himfelf ; but collects only what had been delivered by the Prophets [z] : describing the fate of Nineveh [a] ; the difperfion of his countrymen ; the deftruction of Jerufalem, and of the temple, in the fame manner that Jonah and other Prophets had foretold them. There are no circumitances mentioned in this book which are inconiiftent with the period in which Tobit is related to have lived [b] ; nor is there any internal objection to the fuppofition of its being com- piled foon after the events therein defcribed, or at leaft before the time of Chrift. In the Vulgate, in- deed, the temple of Jerufalem is fpoken of as already burnt [c] ; and it has been fuppofed that part of [z] Chap. xiv. 4, 5. [a] Grotius thinks that Jonas is inferted in chap. xiv. 4, 8. by miftake for Nahum. But Jonah's prophecy, in ch. iii. 4. of his book, may be fuppofed to include the deftruclion of Nineveh by the Medes and Babylonians. Its accomplishment was pro- tracted but not frustrated. [b] It mould be remarked, that Nebuchodonofor, mentioned in chap. xiv. 15. was NabopolafTar. Vid. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XVIII. c. xi. comp. with Lib. I. cont. Apion. & Juchafin. fol. 136. AiTuerus was Aftyages, or his fon, the Cyaxares of Herodotus. Nineveh was taken A. M.-3392. Vid. Prid. An, 612. Preface to Nahum, p. 474. [c] Chap. xiv. 7. and xiii. 11. Vulgate. N n 3 Tobit's 550 OF THE BOOK OF TOBIT. Tobit's prophetic aflurance was drawn from the writings of Jeremiah ; but as in the Greek verfion from which our tranflation is made, that deftru6tion is fpoken of prophetically [d] as yet to happen; and as all the predictions which are here inierted might have been drawn from Prophets who preceded his time, there is no reafon to difpute the antiquity af- cribed toTobit, or to his book [e]. From the fame facred fource of the earlier Prophets, might have been derived thole predictions which Tobit records relative to the calling of the Gentiles [f]; and the reftoration of Jerufalem to a magnificence prerigu- rative of its future fpiritual glory in the eftablmV inent of the Chriftian church [g]. With refpecl; to the hiftory contained in this book, there is no reafon to queftion its truth, at [d] Chap. xiv. 4. drawn perhaps from Micah iii. 12. [ e] Aman, mentioned in chap. xiv. 10. was not Haman the proud enemy of Mordecai and the Jews, mentioned in the book of Efther, nor Judith's hufband, but fome predeceflor or contemporary of Tobit, with whofe hiftory we are unac- quainted. [f] Chap. xiii. 11. which perhaps alludes to the offering of the wife men, defcribed in St. Matt. ii. 11. The prediction may be drawn from David's prophecy in Pfalm lxxii. 10. of which the very words are introduced in the Hebrew copy publifhed by Fagius. See alfo chap. xiv. 6, 7. which might be grounded on the prophecies in Micah v. 12, 14. Ifaiah ii. 18. xxxi, 7, Zechar. xiii. 2, &c. [g] Chap. xiii. 16 — 18. xiv. 5 — 8. which figurative paiTages refemble fome metaphorical defcriptions of St. John. Vid. Rev. xxi. 10 — 27. xxii. 3 — 6, but which were probably borrowed from Ifaiah liv. 1 1 — 17. leaft OF THE BOOK OF TOBIT. 551 ieaft as to the main particulars; and the Jews do not appear to have entertained any doubts on the lubject [h]. It is written with much Simplicity, and with an air of verity. The characters are deicribed with great fincerity and effect ; and the minute detail of genealogy, of time, place, andperibnal circumftances [r], while they heighten the intereft, tend to de- monftrate the truth and reality of the relation. To- bit, then, is to be confidered as a real character; he was born probably during the reign of Ahaz ; he was of the tribe of Xephthali, in the city of Thifbe [k], in Upper Galilee; he was carried captive to Nineveh [h] Juchafin. Hierom. ad Chron. & Heliod. Grot. Prasf. ad Tob. Sixt. Senens. Bib. Lib. VIII. [i] Chap. v. 1 6. The mention of Tobias's dog has been frequently reprefented as a ludicrous and unneceffary particu- lar. But there is often as much want of tafte as of candour in criticifm of this nature. The introduction of fuch incidental particulars is not unufual in the moft admired works of an- tiquity. Via. Odyff. Lib. II. 1. n. ^Eneid. Lib. VIII. 1. 463. It deferves to be remarked, that in the eleventh chapter of the Vulgate, the dog is faid to have firft appeared as the harbinger of the fon's return ; and the Syriac verfion repre- fents Anna to have firft perceived the dog ; and indeed, the Greek has been thought to intimate nearly as much, for it fays, not that (he faw Tobias himfeif, but Tn^^^a-Di ctviov tf^of*£vov, " perceived that he was coming," as pouibly by the dog. In this there is nothing low or ridiculous, but an in- cident familiar and elegant. Comp. with Odyff. Lib. XVII. 1. 301, 302. [k] Thifbe was at the right hand (that is, to the fouth ; for the Jews in the defcription of places, fuppofe the fpeaker to face the eaft) of Kadefh. Nepthafi (Kt.£i^ or xvpiu;, or N n 4 y.x^tJq .552 OF THE BOOK OF TOBIT. Nineveh after the extinction of the kingdom of Ifrael, by Enemailar, or sahnaneffer, auout A. M. S£8'3 [l]. . . The hiitory of this captive, and of his family, is here related in a very interesting manner ; it is en- livened with much variety of incident and decorated by the difplay of many virtues. Some of the inci- dents, as the miniftry of the angel ; the influence and defeat of the evil i'pirit; as well as the biindnefs and recovery of Tobit, have appeared i'o improbable to many writers, that they have cholen to confider the whole book merely as an inftructive fittion [m], defigned to illuftrate the relative and focial chari- ties of life, and to exhibit a pattern of virtue ex- ercifed in trials, and recompenied in this world ; but there are no phyfical objections to the caufes affigned either for the deprivation [n] or refuta- tion xxohj<; t>)s Na], and probably never in the Hebrew language [eJ. It is not reck- oned in the facred catalogues of the earlier church; and the generality of ancient writers confefs, that it D J ' ib not to be coniidered as the work of Solomon. It contains citations of fcripture from the Septuagint, even where that veriion differs from the Hebrew text [f] ; and borrows from books written long after the time of Solomon [o]. The copy which has the higheit pretentions to be coniidered as the original, is in Greek profe. Some learned men have fancied, that they have difcov. in this book, as well as in that of Ecclefiafticir Hebrew meafure, which obtains in the authentic works of Solomon [h]. The fentences have indeed often a poetical turn ; and in the Alexandrian ma- nufcript, they are written in regular arrangement, like the book of Job, of Pi alms, and thofe of [d] Melito Epift. ad Onefim. Eufeb. Hilt. Ecclef. Lib. IV. c. xxv. Athan. Syuop. Epiphan. de Pond. & Menfur. Hicron. Prol. in Lib. Solom. Job. Damafcen. de Kid. Orthod. Lib. IV. ^. xviii. [e] Auguft. de Civit. Dei. Lib. XV1L c. xviii. Hicron. Prol. Gal. [f] Chap. v. 10, n. from Pro v. xxx. 19. Ch. xi. 12. from Ifaiah iii. 10. [g] Compare Wifd. iii. 14. with Ifaiah lvi. 4, £. Wifdi ix. 13. with Ifaiah xl. 15. Wifd. xiii. ri. with Ifaiah xliv. 13. Wifd. v. 18. with Ifaiah lix. 17. Wifd. ii. 6, 7. with Ifainh lvi. 12. [h] Vid. Grabe's Proleg. torn. ult. c. i. 2. Calmet's Did. in Wifd. Ep'phaii. de Ponder. & Menfur; Solomon, OF THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON i>7J Solomon, to which this was Subjoined in fome old Latin tranilations, and by Dr. Grabe in his edition. Hence ionic have conceived that it was tranilated from the Hebrew into Greek ; and ibme with lei's reaibn t'uppole it to have been tranflated from the Chaldee, in which language II. Moles Ben Nach- man profclTes to have feen it [i] ; though probably wliat he faw was a tranilation from the Greek into that language. But in whatever language it was written, it has always been defervedly efteemed as a treafure of wif- doin. It was corripoied in imitation of the ftile of Solomon, though, perhaps, not deiigned to pais for his work, but to communicate inch inftruftions as might be coniiftent with his aifumed character. Many ancient writers have cited it as a work at- tributed to Solomon [k], and as not unworthy, from its refemblance to his writings, to be considered as the performance of that enlightened monarch ; and ibme appear to have confidered it as his genuine production. Laftantius, with other writers, repre- sents, in loofe citation, the description of the juft man perfecnted, which is contained in the lecond chapter, to be a prophecy delivered by Solomon concerning our Saviour's fufferings [lJ. It is cer- [i] R. Mafes Ben Nachman, Prol. Com. in Pentat. [k] Clcni. Alex. Strom. Lib. VI. p. 669. Eufeb. Hifr. Eg. clef. Lib. VI. c. vii. Tertol. cont. Marcion, Lib. III. Ort- gen conr. Celf. Lib. III. & Homil. 8. in Exod. Hieron. in Pfalm Ixxiii. [ i. ] Ladant. de Ver, Sap. Lib. IV. $ 16. Wifd. ii. 1 2—21. tain, 576 OF THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON tain, however, that the book was not written by Solomon, as St. Auftin, who iikewife coniiders this paifage as prophetic, allows [m]. The antiquity and high importance of the book, appear to have excited great reverence in the ancient church [xj; and fome of the fathers ieem to have thought that the book of Wifdom, and that of Ecclefiaiticus, con- tained paflages, at leaft, that were infpired. St. Auftin affirms that the chriftian writers who immedi- ately fucceeded the apoftles, adduced its teftimony as divine [o] ; but it does not appear that they, or St. Auftin himfelf, confidered the book as really the work of an infpired penman, fince he allowed that neither this book, nor that of Ecclefiaiticus, were pro- duced againft gainfayers with the fame authority as the undoubted writings of Solomon. And he elfe- [m] Auguft. de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVII. c. xx. [n] St. Auftin fays, if Non debuit repudiari fententia Libri fapientiae, qui meruit in Ecclelia Chrilti de gradu leftorum tarn longa annofitate recitari." From this it fhould feem, that the apocryphal books were read in a lower place by the lettours, or inferior officers of the church. Whereas the infpired books were read by the priefts and bifhops from a more confpicuous place. De Gradu Epifcoporum. Vid. Auguft. de Pradeft. c. xiv. § 27. Edit. Antwerp. [o] St. Auftin may be underftood to mean, that they who cited Wifd. iv. 11. cited it as a faithful faying, and as grounded on divine authority. Vid. de Prasdeft. Sanct. c. xiv. i 2.8. & Cyprian. L. de Mortal. Sc L. Teftim. 3 ad Quirin. St, Auftin fays likewife of this book in an hyperbolical encomium, that it deferves " ah omnibus Chriftianis, cum veneratione divinae auftoritatis audiri." Vid. alfo, de Doct. Chrift. Lib. II. c. viii. where OF THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON 57? where iadmits, that after the death of Malachi, the Jews had no Prophet till the appearance of Zacha- rias, the father of John the JBaptiit [p]. And the fa- thers, indeed, in general, however they might he dazzled by particular paflages, or confider them as fragments of infpired writings, reprefent the book of Wif'dom as inferior to the canonical books ; they efteem it as a work of admirable tendency, and as of a fcriptural character, but not as absolutely derived from the luggeftions of the Holy Spirit [oj. Some partial councils [r] admitted it as canonical in a Secondary interpretation of that word ; but it was always confidered as inferior to the books con- tained in the Hebrew catalogue, till by the peremp- tory decifion of the Council of Trent, it was re- ceived as a work of equal authority with them. Still, [p] Auguft. de Civit. Dei. Lib. XVIII. c. xxiv. [q] It is exprefsly represented as inferior to the (acred books by many writers. Vid. Hierarch. de Divin. Nomin. c. 4. Eufeb. Hift. Ecclef. Lib. VI. c. xii. Athan. Epift. 39. & Synop. Epiphan. de Pond, ic Menfur. Philaft. de Hsres. Prodiant. Bafil Praef. Com. in Prov. Auguft. de Civit. Dei, Lib, XVII. c. xx. Hugo de S. Viet, de Script, et Scriptor. Sac. c. vi. Thorn. Aquinas, in Dionyf. de Divin. Horn. c. iv. Left, IX. Du Pin, Dill*. Prel. [r] As the third Council of Carthage, that of Sardis, and that of Constantinople in Trull 0 ; the eleventh of ToledOj and that of Florence, Provincial fynods, or corrupt councils unduly influenced, of which the canons relative to the fcrip- tures were fometimes afterwards forged or altered, and which were not received by oecumenical councils. Vid. Cofin's Schol. Hift. Du Pin, Hift. Ecclef. Sc Bib. Pat. torn. i. p.i, and Arnald's note to Calmet's preface. P p however, 57$ OF THE WISDOM OF SOLOM05T. however, the moft zealous defenders [s] of the Komifh church acknowledge, that it never was in the Hebrew canon as compofed by Ezra [t] ; at the doling of which we have every realbn to believe that the fpirit of inipiration ceafed. The book was probably written by an Helleniftical Jew ; but whether before or after (Thrift, has been disputed. Grotius is of opinion, that it was originally written in Hebrew by a Jew who lived at fome time intermediate between Ezra and Simon the Juft ; and that it was tranflated by a Chriftian with fome free- dom and additions of evangelical doctrine. But the ftiie, as St. Jerom has obferved, indicates rather the artificial contexture of Grecian eloquence, than the terfenefs and compreffive fnnplicity of the Hebrew language. The book is alio replete with allulions to Greek mvtholosv, and with imitations of Grecian writers: with whofe works, and efpecially with thofe of Plato, the author appears to have been intimately acquainted. St. Jerom informs us, that many ancient writers affirmed that the book of Wifdom was written by [s] As Ifidore, Nicephorus, Rabanus Maurus, Hngo, Ly- rari, Cajcfan. Vid. Nipeph. Lib. IV. c. xxxiii. Limborch. Theolog. Chrift. Lib. I. c. iii. Melch. Canus Loc. Theolog. Lib. V. cap. ult. Baron Ann. torn. viii. ad Ann. 692, Calmet's Preface. [t] Ifidore in one place relates, that fome perfons reported tbat it was e::punged from the Jcwifh canon becaufe it contained a clear prophecy of Chrift ; an idle fable which Ifidore mirll have difcreditcd. V'h). Ofiic. Lib. I. c. xii. Philo G OF THE WISDOM OF SOLOMOX. 679 Philo Judasus ; by whom the generality of commen- tators [it] fuppofe to have been meant the Philo ienior, who is mentioned by Jofephus, as having furnillied ibme relations concerning the Jews which were tolerably faithful [x] ; and who is generally fuppoled to have flourifhed before or about the time of the Maccabees. And there are many realons which mould lead us to iuppoie that the book [y] was written before the birth of Chrift. But as fome paffages in the book feem to indicate an acquaint- ance with the particulars of the Gofpel difpenfation, and to be imitative of parts of the NewTeftament : many perfons have maintained that the author mull have lived after the publication of the evangelical writings; and fome have fuppoled, from a conformity between the principles and fentiments contained in this book and thole difperfed through the works of [u] Hieron. Przef. in Proverb. Salom. Huet. Prop. 4. Bofluet Pra?f. in Lib. Sap. Driedo de Ecclef. Dogm. c. iv. [x] Jofeph. con:. Apion. Lib. I. Jofephus remarks, that Philo, and fome other hiftorians of whom he fpeaks, were en- titled to indulgence, as they had it not in their power to be- come accurately acquainted with the Hebrew writings ; from which we may colleft, that he was ignorant of the Hebrew language, and probably he was an Helleniftic Jew, which is confiftent with the account of St. Jerom. Some poetical frag- ments of Philo relative to the Patriarchs are cited by Alex- ander Polyhiftor. Vid. Eufeb. Prasp. Evang. Lib. IX. c. xx. & xxiv. Clem. Alex. Strom. Lib. I. This Philo was a dif- ferent pcrfon from Philo Biblius, who flourifhed under Adrian and Trajan. [y] Origen cont. Celf. Lib. I. Eufeb. Demonft. Evan. Lib. I. c, vi. Selden de Pentateuch. P p 2 Philo 580 OF THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON. Philo [z] of Alexandria, which we now poiiefs, that he was the author of it [a]. Dr. Rainolds imagines that it was compoled about A. D. 42, upon the occafion of an order from the Emperor Caligula, that his ftatue mould be let up and adored in the temple [b] of Jerufalem, when Philo was lent to Rome by the Jews to plead againft this prophanation, but without effect. This fuppofition the learned writer defends, as confiftent with the argument and drift of the b.ook of Wifdom ; and to this idea he refers thole precepts in the firft and ftxth chapters, which defcribe the duty of princes ; as well as for the denunciations againft tyrants and idolatry ; and conceives that they were defigned to convey admo- nition and reproof to Caligula. But notwithstanding the many prefumptive argu- ments that have been urged in fupportof this opinion, there is fome reafon to believe that the work was not written by Philo of Alexandria [c], but, indeed, previoufiy [z] Fkft publhhed at Paris by Turnebus in 1552, after, wards at London, by Dr. Mangey, in 1742, 2 vols. Vid. collated paffages in Calmct's Differ tation fur l'Auteur du Livre de la Sageffe. [a] Bafil Epift. ad Amphiloch. Joh. Beleth. de Div. Offic. c. lx. Whitaker's Origin of Arianifm, p. 132 — 136. [b] Sueton. in Vita Caligula? 22. Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XVIII, c. viii. Rain. Cenftir. Apoc. Praileft. 22. [ c] This Philo was very converfant with the facred writings, and indulged himfelf too much in the fanciful explications of them. His works, which blend the principles of Plato with the doctrines of fcripture, arc fuppofod to have been the fource at which Origen and the myitical writers imbibed an ex. travagant OF TtlE WISDOM OF SOLOMON". 581 previoufly to the birth of Chriit. Some paiTages in it appear to be cited by writers who were nearly contemporary with Philo [d] ; and it is probable, that a work profeffing to be the production of Solomon, was publifhed under the Jewiili difpenia* tion ; as, indeed, by the generality of writers it was fuppofed to be. TnEcorrelpondence which has been conceived to exift between this book and the works of Philo, might, it is laid, be occalioned by the imitations of the latter ; and the fuppofed refemblances between paifages in this book, and others in the New Tefta- ment, may be thought on examination to be either imitations of fimilar pallages in the facred books of the Old Teftament [e] ; or fuch caiual coinci- dences extravagant fpirit of figurative interpretation. Philo is repre- fented to have lived in friendfhip with St. Peter at Rome in the reign of Claudius, to have been converted to Chriftianity, and to have afterwards apoftatifed. Vid. Jofeph. Lib. VIII, c. x. Eufeb. Hift. Lib. II. c. ii. xvii. xviii. Phot. Cod. 105. Hieron. de Script. Ecclef. c. xi. Eufeb. Pnp. Lib. VII. c. xii. Some authors maintain that the book of Wifdom differs widely from the ftile of Philo, and contains fome principles very oppofitc to thofe laid down in his works. Vid. Calmet, Preface fur le Livre de la Sageffe. [p] Barnab. Epift. from Wifd. ii. 12. Clem. Rom. Epift. ad Corinth, c. iii. from Wifd. ii. 24. c. xxvii. from Wifd. xi. 22. & xii. 12. [e] Thus Wifd. ii. 18. and Matt, xxvii. 43. might both be derived from Pfa. xxii. 8, 9. So Wifd. iii. 7. & Matt. xiii. 43. might be from Dan. xii. 3. Wifd. ii. 7, 8, & 1 Cor. xv. 3?. from Ifa. xxii. 13. & lvi. 12. Wifd. v. 18, 19. Sc Ephef. vi. 14. from Ifa. lix. 7. Wifd. vi. 7. & A&s x. 34, <£rc. from P p 3 2 Chror:. 58S5 OF THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON. dences [f] of fentiments or expreffions as may be found between all works treating on the fame fub- jecc It need noi, however, be fuppofed, that the beau- tiful paifuge contained in the fecond chapter, though written before the coming of Chrift, can confer any character of infpiration on the book ; for if we con- fid er the description of the juft man periecuted and condemned to a iTiameiui death by liis confpiring enemies, as bearing n prophetic afpe6t to the fuffer- ings and condemnation of our Saviour by the Jews ; it might ftill have been framed by a writer conver- sant with the prophetic books [g], without any in- ipireil knowledge. But it is, perhaps, only applicable bycalualaccommodaticn and undefigned refemblance to our Saviour, who might be eminently ftiled " the 2 Chron. xix. 7. or from Job xxxiv. 19. Wifd. i\\ 9, & John i. i- — 3, 10. from Prov. via. 22. Wifd. ix. 13. and Rom. xi. 34. or 1 Cor. ii. 16. from Ifa. xl. 13. Wifd. xv. 7. and Rom. ix. 21. from Ifa. xlv. 9. and Jerem. xviii. 6. Wifd. xvi. 26. and Matt. iv. 4. from Deut. viii. 3. Wifd. iii. 8. and 1 Cor. vi. 2, 3. from Dan. vii. 18 — 22. [f] Comp. Wifd. vi. 3. with Rom. xiii. 1. Wifd. vii. 26. with Heb. i. 3. Wifd. xii. 24. with Rom. i. 23. Wifd. xiii. 1. with Rom. i. 19, 20. There is, however, no reafon why the evangelical writers fhould not be fuppofed to have cccanonally adopted the oprcflions, or even the fentiments of a pious though uninfpired writer. [g] Comp. chap. ii. 12. efpecially as cited by Barnabas, with Ifaiah iii. 10. Chap. ii. 18. with Pfa. xxii. 8. or xxi. 9. in the Scituaei t. See alfo Matt, xxvii. 43. where David's prophetic expreffions are i.fcd. The lighteous arc often c;illcd the fons of God in a general fenfe. Vid. Exod, iv, 22, Pri Daniel playing on the word, declares R t 3 that 614 ©E THE HISTOR7 OP SUSANNAH. are not likely to be the conceit of a tranflator. There are two Syriac verfions, which differ in their contents. The hiftory might, perhaps, have fome founda- tion in truth, though it is not mentioned by Jofe- phus : who, indeed, has not noticed any of the par- ticulars contained in thefe apocryphal additions to the book of Daniel. The Jews in general rejected it as an improbable fable; and remarked, that it was an obvious abfurdity to fuppofe that their country- men in the captivity were in pofieflion of the power of inflicting punimment on their Judges and Pro- phets [e]. The Jews had, however, fome traditional accounts of the ftory, arid many fancied that it was alluded to by Jeremiah, in the twenty-ninth chapter of his book [f] of prophecies: where they fuppofed the two elders to be defcribed under the names of Zedekiah and Ahab : though thefe perfons are there faid to have been put to death by the King of Ba- bylon. Origen, who defends the truth of the ac- count [g], maintains that the Jews were fuffered to continue in the cxercife of their own judicial laws during the captivity ; and, indeed, they appear to have experienced, in many refpects, considerable in* that the angel {herald £%i tS'iSti?, £ap£V,S Qx^avt th. Vid. Origen. Com. k\ Pfalm. vol. i. p. 47. ap. Eufcb. Lib. VI. c. xxv. Hieron. Prol. Gal. Some read Vk 03 1U> BU*W, " the fcepter of the rebels againit the Lord.1' Vid. Druf. Prsef. in Lib. Vet. Teft. [f] As by Origen and Tertullian. among FIRST BOOK OF TflPfe MACCABEES. 6*27 among the Jews [g] ; and were never reckoned by them in the catalogue of the facred writings. They are not cited by our Saviour, or his apoftles ; and were considered as apocryphal by the primitive church, mice they are not mentioned in the lift of the canonical books furnifhed by Melito, the Council of Laodicea, Hilary; and Cyril of Jerufalem [h] ; they are exprelsly reprefented as books of a Secon- dary rank by many very ancient writers [i] ; and were received as fuch by St. Auftin, and the Coun- cil of Carthage [k] ; notwithstanding which, they were pronounced to be in every refpeet canonical by the Council of Trent. This firft book is cited as a refpeftable hiftory by the fathers [i/j. It was probably written by a con- temporary author, who had, in part, witnefTed the. fcenes which he lb minutely and graphically de- fcribes ; and who wrote under a lively imprefiion of the revolutions which his country had recently ex- • [g] i Mace. iv. 46. ix. 27. xiv. 41. Jofeph. cont. Apion. Lib. I. Parker's IntroducL ad Bib. Voffius, Kidder, &c, [h] Preface to the Apocryphal Books, p. £14, notes m and u. [1] Origen in Pfa. i. & ap. Eufeb. Hift. Lib. VI. c. xx.v. Athan. Synop. Hicron. Prcef. in Prov. Salomon. Gregor. Mag. Moral. Expof. in Job. Lib. XIX. c. xvii. Jimil. African, de Part. Div. Leg. Lib. I. c. iii. [k] Auguft. de Civit. Dei, Lib. XVIII. c. xxxvi. Concil. Carthag. 3. Can. 47. In the printed copies of the pretended decree of Pope Gelafius, only one book of the Maccabees is mentioned. [l] Tertull. Adv. Jud. c. iv. Cyprian, de Exhort. Martyr. § 5. Tell. Lib. III. § 4. § 15. § 53. S s 2 perienced. 628 FIRST BOOK. OS THE .MACCABEES. perienced. It is compofed, at leaft, with great ac- curacy and fpirit, and perhaps approaches nearer to the ftile of facred hiftory than any work now ex- tant. St. John has been thought to fubftantiate the truth of a relation herein furniihed [m] ; and Jofephus appears to have copied moft of its accounts into his Jewiih antiquities ; and though the author has been reprefented in a few initancesas betraying ibme ignorance in treating of foreign affairs [n], yet in other refpecls, many heathen writers corro- borate his reports. The book contains the hiftory of Mattathias, and of his family, and of the wars which the}7 at the head of their countrymen maintained againft the Kings of Syria, in the defence of their religion and lives. From the death of Alexander, who had con- quered Perfia, and the countries dependent on that empire [o], Judesa followed the fate of Syria; and for a fpace of near one hundred and fifty years was {m] S. John reprefents Jefus to have been prefent at the fcaft of the dedication : by which has been underrtood th« fcaft qf the -dedication of the altar, of which the inftitution is recorded in this book. Some have thought, that as this fcaft commenced on the twenty. fifth of December, it might have been pre-ordained with a reference to our Saviour's birth. The Jews celebrated this feait, which they called the feaft of the lights, for eight days, with illuminations and great joy. Vid. John x. zz, 1 Mace, iv. 56 — 59. jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XII. c xi. [n] Chap. i. 5, 6. viii. 6, 7. Rainold's Cenfur. Apoc. Pn- kft. 98,104. [o] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XL c. viii. expofed FIRST BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. 629 expofed to all the ambitious contefts which prevailed between the Kings of Syria and Egypt. After vari- ous revolutions, and alternate iubjection to each of thefe kingdoms ; and after having occafionally l'uf- fered all the opprcflion and exactions that tyranny could enforce by means of the high-priefts, and thofe princes who were appointed by the intereft, and fubject to the control of the conquerors, Judtea Has at the time that this hiitory begins, a tributary province of Syria, under Antiochus Epiphanes ; ami cruelly harraflfed and pillaged by him. The ievere perfecution which he exercifed, and his avowed de- ligns, which tended to exterminate the religion, and, indeed, the whole nation of the Jews [p] : inflamed the zeal of Mattathias to refentment and revolt; and upon his death excited Judas, in compliance with the dying injunctions of his father, to attempt the deliverance of his country. The fucceflive vic« tories, and prudent conduct of Judas and his bre- thren, which effected the accomplishment of their defigns, conftitute the chief fubject of the prefent book. The relation affords a lively picture of a na-' tion infpired by the patriotic heroifm of its leaders, and ftruggling with enthuliafm for civil and religious liberty. It reprefents Judas and his brethren, anxious to " reftore the decayed eftate of the people," and to purify the polluted fanctuary of their God : as en- deavouring by mealures concerted in piety, and con- ducted with fteady fortitude, to conciliate the divine [r] Chap. i. 44 — 64, iii, 34-^-36. S s 3 countenance, 630 FIRST BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. countenance. It defcribes, likewiie, the gradual recovery of Judrea from defolation and miferies to importance and profperity [q], and at the fame time the worthip of the true God rc-eftablilhcd on the ruins of idolatry. 'The author, like the facred hiftorians, feleets in- dividual characters for conlideration, and defcribes the mifconduct as well as the virtues of his heroes. He treats of the affairs of other nations only fo far as connected with the circumftances of the Jewiili hiftory ; and exhibits the changes and vicifiitudes of other governments, as they tended to arfecr, the in- terefts of his country. The particulars recorded in the book, often afford a key to prophecy [r], and efpecially explain the myfterious vilions contained in the eighth and eleventh chapters of Daniel, relating to the horn, by which emblem was prelignified Antiochus [s], [o] Chap. i. 25 — 28. iii. 42 — 51. comp. with chap. x. xii. jo— 23. xi'v. 8 — 23. xv. 1 — 9, 24, 32. [r] Comp. 1 Mace. x. 88, 89. with Zech. ix. 14 — 18. and Jackfon's works,* torn. ii. p. 844. Vid. alfo, 1 Mace. vii, 17. where the fecond and third verfes of Pfalm lxxix. are cited, either by way of accommodation to the circumftances before defcribed ; or as intentionally prophetic (perhaps in a fecondary fenfe.) of the {laughter effected by Alcimus. The Hebrew word Chafulim, indeed, which is tranflated faints in the fecond verfe of the Pfalm, has been confidered as defcriptive of the Aflldeans, who were eminently pious. The Pfalm might, perhaps, have been hiftorical of the calamities occafioned by Nebuchadnezzar, and yet like many others, have borne a prophetic afpect to future circumftances. [sj Jofcph. Antiq. Lib. X. c. xi. Hieron. in Dan. c. viii. who FIRST BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. 63l who fet up the abomination of deiblation on the altar [t]. Mattathias, the father of Judas, was of the fa- cerdotal race, of the courie of Joarib [u] : and as is generally fuppofed, a descendant of Phinehas, the fon of Eleazar, to whom God had given the cove- nant of an everlaiting priefthood [x]. He bimfelf docs not appear to have enjoyed that exalted office [v] ; though it was conferred on his fons ; and re- ltricted as an exelulive privilege to his defcendunts till the typical office was virtually evacuated by the inftitution of a fpiritual priefthood in the time of Herod; who, except in the cafe of Ariftobulus, the grandibn of Hyrcanus, did not refpect the preten- lions of the Afmonrean family, but conceded the priefthood to any of the facerdotal lineage [z]. [t] Chap. i. 54, 55. By the abomination of dcfolation, which as Daniel had predicted was fet up on the altar, we may underftand the idol that was placed there by order of Antiochus. It is fuppofed to have been the ftatue of Jupiter Olympius. Vid. 2 Mace. vi. 2. Idols in fcripture are com- monly called abominations. Vid. 1 Kings xi. 5, 7. And the idol might be faid to make defolate, as it expelled the worfhip of the true God, and occafioned the deft ruction of his fervants. Comp. Dan. xi. 31. with 1 Mace. i. 54. and 2 Mace. vi. 1, 2. [u] Chap. ii. 1. or Jahoiarib. This was the firft of the twenty-four courfes which ferved in the temple. Vid. 1 Chron. xxiv. 7. [x] Numb. xxv. 11 — 13. 1 Mace. ii. 54. Jurieu's Critic. Hift. vol. i. Part III. c. i. p. 372. [y] Calmet. Diet. Word Mattathias. [z] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XX. c. viii. S s 4< Judas, £>32 FIRST* BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. . Judas, whofe exploits are celebrated in this .his- tory, has been thought to have derived Lis title of Maccabasus from the initial letters of the four \v i s tvith which his ftandard is fuppofed to ha\ & en decorated [a J, and which were taken from tne eleventh veri'c qf the fifteenth chapter of 1 xqdus, " Mi Camo-ka Baelim Jehovah;'' \\ ho is like unto thee among the gods, O Jehovah ? from this Judas his defcenclaiits were called Maccabees. They were called, likew lie, Almonoeans, either because, as Jofer phus informs us, Mattat'iias was a defcendant of Afmonarus [b] ; or by an honourable and eminent distinction, as the llebrew word iignifies prince6 [cj. £.'any writers maintain, that they were de- fended maternally from the race of Judah [d], [a] Orhers who think that Judas was named Maccabeus before he erected his ftandard ; or who collect from monument6 that a lion was imprinted an *he ftandard of the Maccabees, derive the word Maccabacu: from »3 HDD, " per me eft plaga." Vid. Godwyn de Repub. f^d. Lib. I. c. i. Some derive it from Macehabeth, or Macchubeth, M hidden," becaufe Mat- tathias and his companions concealed themfelves in the wilder- nefs. Vid. chap. ii. zS — 31. Others, laftly, derive it from Makke-Baiah, which fignifies " Conqueror in the Lord." Vid. Prid. An. 167. & Calmet. on 1 Mace. ii. 4. Ben Gorion^ L. III. c. 9. [b] Jofeph. Antiq. Lib. XII. c. viii. [c] Charchamanim. Vid. Pfalm lxvii. 32. It is rendered TlftoGut, in the Septuagint of Pfalm lxvii. p. 31. Vid. Kim. chi. Druf. Praef. in Maccab. Eufeb. Demonft. Evang. Lib. VIII. [d] Hiexon. in Ofee, cap. iii. in Sophon. c. i. Auguft. cont, Fauft. Lib. I. c. lxxii. Sec. Preface to Hill. Books, p. 133, rote 0. Ariitobulus, FIRST BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. 633 Ariftobulus, the Ton of Ilyrcanus, was the firft who ailumcd the title of King after the captivity. He bequeathed the crown to his fon, after whole death it was a fubject of conteft to his children ; and on the capture of Hyrcanus the I.lder, by the Parthians, conferred by the Romans on Herod [e]. [z] Swlpit. Sever. S, Hid. L. II, '■ FO [ 634 j OF THE SECOND BOOK of the MACCABEES. THIS Book contains a compilation of hiftorical records extracted from different works ; but efpecially an abridgment of an hiftory of the perfe- ctions of Epiphanes, and Eupator [a] againft the Jews, which had been written in Greek in five books, by an Helleniftical Jew of Cyrene, named Jafon : a descendant probably of thole Jews who had been placed there by Ptolemy Soter [b], and which is no longer extant. The name of the com- piler is not known. He was doubtleis a different perfon from the author of the preceding book. He dates from an a?ra fix months later than that chofen by him, and not only writes with lefs accuracy, and [a] Chap. ii. 19—29. Clemens Alexandrinus calls it the epitome of the Maccabaic hiftory. Vid. Strom. L. V; p. 595. [b] Prid. Con. Par. I. B. VIII, An. 320. The Cyreneans were of Greek extraction. Callimachus, the Poet of Cyrene, wrote in Greek. Jofeph. Antic], L. XIV. c. xiii, L. XVI. c. x. in SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. Go5 hi a more florid ftile, but likewife relates ibme par- ticulars in a manner inconhitent with the accounts of the firft book [c] ; from which, neverthelcis, he basin other initanccs borrowed both ientiments and facts. Some writers have attributed this lecond book to Philo of Alexandria [d] ; and others to Jofephus, on grounds equally conje£tural and fallacious. Nei- ther Eufebius nor St. Jerom fpeak of it as among the works of Philo ; and the dilcourfe of the Maccabees, or the Empire of Reafon, which Eufebius and St. Jerom fuppofe to have been written by Jofephus [e], is a very different work, though it mentions many particulars contained in this book. Sera in us [f] maintained that the Second Book of Maccabees was the production of Judas, the Ef- [c] Comp. i Mace. vi. 13 — 16. with 2 Mace. i. 16. and ix. 28. 1 Mace. ix. 3, 18. with 2 Mace. i. 10. 1 Mace. iv. 36. with 2 Maec. x. 2, 3. & Ufher. [d] Honor. Auguftod. de Scriptor. Eccl. in Philone. [e] Eufeb. Hift. Ecclef. Lib. III. c. x. Hieron.adv. Pelag. Lib. I. c. iii. & Lib. de Script. Ecclef. in Jofeph. This book, whether properly or improperly attributed to Jofephus, is en- titled, £15 May.xciQccm; Xoy&y -n "STep a.v\ov. ftzlof{& AoyKT/y.a. 1 he word Maccabees being applied to all who diftinguilhed themfelves in the caufe of religion and freedom ; and fometimes, as in this in- ftance, to thofe who flourifhed before the time of Judas. Vid. Scaliger in Chron. Eufeb. n. 1853, p. 143. The work of Jofe- phus is a rhetorical declamation on the power of reafon, acting on religious principles ; in which the author illuftrates his fubject by a defcription of the conduct and fpeeches of Eleazar, and the other martyrs whofe fortitude is celebrated in this fecond book of Maccabees. [r] Serar. Prol. II. in Mace. Sc Rupert, de Vift. Verb. fenian, 63(5' SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. ■ fenian, who is described by Jofcphus [g] as a man of great authority for his wifdom ; who, likewife, ac- cording to the hiftorian's account was endowed with the infallible I'pirit of prophecy [n], and predicted the death of Antigouus, the fecond Ion of John Hyr- earius the Prieit ; and whom Serarius imagines to be mentioned in the fourteenth verfe of the fecond chap- ter of this book. But that paffage is generally al- lowed to relate to J udas Maccabaeus ; and affords no light with refpect to the author of this book. It is with more probability, though with equal uncertainty afiigned to Simon, or Judas Maccabaeus ; while fome have fanfied that the whole book is only a letter written by the fynagogue of Jerufalem to the Jews in Egypt : not diftinguifhing the historical from the epiitolary parts [i]. By whomfoever it was com- posed, it fhould feem to have been originally written in Greek ; and the compiler, as well as the author, whole work he abridged, follows the Syrian mode of computation, reckoning by the years of the Seleu- cidas [k]. The two epiftles which are contained in ,the firit and fecond chapters, and which are there laid to have been written by the Jews at Jerufalem to their - [c] Jofeph, Antiq. Lib. Xl\l. c. xix. [h] Jofeph, de Bell. jud. Lib. I. c. iii, [i] Genebr. Chronol. Coteler. Not. ad Can. Apoft. p. 338. [k] Prideaux conceives^ that the compiler muft have been an Egyptian Jew, fin.ee he feems to ha,ve acknowledged the leffer temple in Egypt, for he diftinguifhes the temple at Jerufalem as •' the great temple." Vid. chap, ii, 19, xiv. 13.. brethren SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. 657 brethren at Alexandria, exhorting them to obferve the feaft of the Tabernacles, and that of the Purifi- cation, are by Prideaux confidered as fpurious ; the fecond, indeed, is laid to have been written by Judas, who was not living at the time of the date [l] ; and it contains many extravagant and fabulous particu- lars. It begins at the tenth vcrfe of the firft chapter, and terminates with the eighteenth of the lecond; from thence to the end of the chapter is a ihort pre- face of the compiler to the abridgment of Jafbn's hif- tory ; which commences with the third chapter, and concludes with the thirty-feventh vcrfe of the fifteenth chapter, the two laft verfes forming a kind of con- clufion to the work. The book contains an hiftory of about fifteen years, from the enterprize of Heliodorus in the tem- ple, A. M. 3828, to the victory of Judas Maccabseus againft Kicanor, A. M. 3843. The chapters are not, however, arranged exaclly in chronological order. The book begins at a period fomewhat earlier than that of the firft book of Maccabees. As the author appears at firft to have intended only an epitome of the hiftory of Judas Maccaba?us and his brethren, with fome contemporary events [m], the account of the puniihment of Heliodorus, which occurred under Seleucus, the predeceflbr of Epiphanes, as well as the circumftances related in the two laft chapters which happened under Demetrius Sotor, the fuc- [l] Com. i Mace. ix. j, j8. with 2 Mace. i. 10. [m] Chap. ii. icj— 23. ceifor t)3S SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. ceffor of Eupator, have been ibmetimes reprefented as fublequent additions by ibme later writer. But fmce thei'e events as connected with the time of Judas, were not irrelative to the author's defign : there is noreafon, except from a pretended difference of ftile, to difpute their authenticity as a part of Ja- fon's hiftory : or, at leaft, as a genuine addition af- fixed to the epitome by the compiler. The author had no title, any more than the writer of the pre- ceding book, to be confidered as an infpired hif- torian : he fpeaks, indeed, of his own performance in the diffident ftile of one confeious of the fallibility of his own judgment, and diitruftful of his own powers [n]. His work was never confidered as firstly canonical till received into the facred lift by the Council of Trent, though examples are produced from it by many ancient writers [o]. It muft be allowed to be a valuable and inftructive hiftory ; and affords an intereiting deieription of a perfecuted and afflicted people : furnilhing in the relation of the conduct of Eleazar, and of the woman and her chil- dren who fuffercd for their attachment to their re- ligion, an example of conftancy, that might have animated the martyrs of the chriftian church. The Tn] Chap. xv. 38. which is written in the ftile of an un- infpired writer, aud refembles the conclusion of the oration of iEfchines againft Ctefipho. Vid. Preface to 1 Mace. p. 625, 626. [o] Ambrofe de Jacob, & Vita Beat. c. x. xi. xii. Be Lib. de Offic. c. xl. xli, Auguft. de cur. gerend. pro Mortnis, L. I. § 3. author SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. 639 author induftrioully dii\ s the confidence in a re- ■iurrection and future life |_ which prevailed at the period of his hiftory, and wL i was the encourage- ment that enabled thole who s «e lb feverely tried, to fullain their tortures. lie lik-_ rife, perhaps, more particularly enforced the doctrine of a refurrection with a defign to counteract the propagation of the Sadducean principles, which were then rifing into notice. It has been thought to detract from the credibi- lity of the particulars recorded in this book, that neither the author of the preceding work, norJofe- phus in thofe his acknowledged writings, where he treats of the perfecution carried on by Antiochus [q], mould mention the fufferings of the martyrs whole memorial is here celebrated. But the filence of thefe hiitorians can furnifli no fufficient argument to deny that there was, at leaft, fome ground-work for the account of this book, with whatever exaow- ' DC rations we may iuppoie it to have been decorated. The defcription, likewife, of the prodigies and me- teorological conflicts which portended calamities to Judaea, ought not to invalidate our confidence in the veracity of the writer of this book ; fmce it is un- queftionable from the teftimony of refpeetable hii- torians [it] ; and, indeed, from the evidence of holy writ [s] : that fuch ominous appearances have fome- [p] Chap. vii. 9, 11, 14, 25, 29, 36. & xiv. 46. [q] De Belt. Jud. L. I. Jofeph. Antiq. J.. XII. c. v. ft] Jofeph. de Bell. Jud. Lib. VII. c. xii. [*] Luke xxi, 25. time& 640 SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. times been witnefled. And when, as in this inftancc\ the phenomena are reprefented by an hiftori&n, per- haps nearly contemporary, to have continued forty days [t] : it is unreafonable to iuipecfc deluiion, or wilful mifreprel'entatiors. So, likewife, however irrr- probable thoi'e accounts may appear, in which God is defcribed to have vindicated the infulted ianftity of his temple [u] ; and to have difcountenanced the adverfaries of his people by apparitions and angelical viiions [x] ; it is certain, that many philosophical and judicious writers have maintained the reality of fnnilar appearances [v] ; and that the popular fuper- ftitions and belief in iuch apparitions may, without credulity, be fuppofed to have originated in the mi- raculous interpoiitions which were fometimes dis- played in favour of the Jewifh people [z]. But though the book may, perhaps, be vindicated in general, with refpect to hiftorical truth, it con- tains fome parts of exceptionable character ; and fome paflages in it have been objected to as of dan- gerous example [a]. The Romanifts, indeed, who in deference to the decifion of the Tridentine fathers, admit the canonical authority of the book, have [t] Chap. v. i — 3. [u] Chap. iii. 24 — 29. [xj Chap. x. 29, 30. xi. 8. [y] Cicero Tufcul. Qiurft. L. I. & de Natur. Deor. L. II - [z] Jofhua v. 13. [a] Chap. j. 18 — 36. & Rainold's Cenfur. Apocryph. torn. ii. Przeleft. 133, 134. Vld. alfo, chap. \iv. 41 — 46. where the furious attempt of Razis to fail . his own i'word is fpoken of with feeming approbation, 8 produced SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. 641 produced the Iaft verfes of the twelfth chapter to countenance their notions concerning purgatory and prayers for the dead [b]. , The work, as the production of a fallible and unenlightened man, may contain a mixture of error; and certainly mould be read with that difcretion which, while it feeks inftruction, guards againft the intrulion of falfe and pernicious opinions. If St. Paul, in his eulogium on fome illuftrious examples of faith, mould be thought to have eftablimed the truth, or approved the examples of this hiftory, he by no means bears teftimony to the infpiration of its author {c] ; or eftablimes its general authority in point of doctrine. The apoftles configned for the direction of the chriftian church, the productions of only thofe [b] Bellarm. de Purgat. Lib. II. c. iii. Some think that Judas is commended for having prayed, not for the dead, but that the guilt of the dead might not be imputed to the living ; but though the Greek be lefs favourable to the doctrine of the Romi(h church than the Vulgate, it muft be confeffed that the paffage will not admit of that conftrutftion. Judas, probably, did not dream of purgatory j but he is certainly reprefented to have prayed for the dead ; and in the Greek, as well as in the Latin, the reconciliation is faid to have been made for the purpofe of delivering the dead from fin. [c] It is faid in the nineteenth verfe of the fixth chapter, that Eleazar, acv^xt^ilu^ E7r» to Tvpiravov vjfoo-nyiv. And St. Paul, fpeaking of martyrs who had fuffered in hopes of a refurrec- tion, fays, «Moi & flvpTrctna-Qncrotv, from which expreflion fome conceive that the apsftle alludes to the death of Eleazar, fup- pofing rvy.Trctvov to fignify fome fpecific engine of torture. If the apoftle did refer to the account of this book, which is a point much controverted, it will only prove that the relation is true, T t " holy 642 SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. " holy men who were moved by the Holy Ghoft."'5 St. Auftinjuftly remarked, in anfwer to the Circum- cellion Donatilts [d], who had urged the defperate attempt of Razis [e], in defence of fuicide : that they muft have been hard prefled for examples, to have recourie to the book of Maccabees ; for that this book was of fubordinate authority, as not elta- bliihed on the teftimony of the Jewifh church, or on that of Chrift; and as received by the Chriftian church only to be difcreetly read ; and that Razis, however diftinguimed for valour, was not to be pro- poled as an example to j unify felf-murder [f]. The fathers in general, indeed, cite the book as an ufe- ful hiitory [c] ; but not as of authority in point of do6lrine. There are two other books entitled the Third and Fourth Books of Maccabees, which were never received by any church. That which is improperly itiled the third ; and which in point of time mould be confidered as the fjrfj;; defcribes the perfecution of Ptolemy Philopator againft the Jews in Egypt, about A. M. 3789; and the miraculous delivery of thofe who were expofed in the Hypodroine of Alex- [d] Thefe were a party of confederated ruffians of the fourth century, who praclifed and defended aflaffinations, and who recommended fuicide when it could refcue them from public punifhment. Vid. Moflicim. Ecclef. Hift. Cent. IV, Part H. [e] Chap. xiv. 41. [rj Auguft. Epift. 61. ad Dulcit. Cofin's, Scholafl. Hift. $ 81. [oj Cyprian, Exhort. Martyr, j 11. TelUm. L. III. § 4* andria SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. 643 andria to the fury of elephants. This is a work en- titled to much refpe6t; it is in the moil ancient - manufcript copies of the Septuagint [m], and is cited by the fathers [i], but never having been found in the Vulgate, which verlion was univerfally uled m tiie Weftern church, and from which our tranilations were made, it never was admitted into our Liblcs. Grotius fuppofes it to have been written loon after the book of Eccleiiafticus. The hiftory is not noticed by Jofephus ; though in the ancient verfion of his fe- cond book againlt Apion by Rufmus, there are fome particulars that leein to allude to it. The book, which is ufually called the Fourth Bool: of the .Maccabees, and which contains an hif- tory of the pontificate of John Hyrcanus, was firft published in the Paris Polyglot as an Arabic hiftory of the Maccabees. It is fuppofed to have been a tranllation of the work feen by Sixtus Senenlis [k] in a Greek manufcript at Lyons, and which was afterwards burnt [l] ; though according to Calmets account [m], it mould feem to have been a different work from that mentioned by earl)- writers as a [hJ It is in the Alexandrian manufcript at St. James's, and in the Vatican manufcript at Rome. [i] Eufeb. Chron. An. 1800. Theod. in Dan. xi. 7. Canon. Apoli. 85. Athan. Synop. Niceph. vid. Arab. Ver. Paris Polyglot. [k] Sixt. Senen. Biblot. L. I. & Bib. Maxim, a Fran, de la Jfaye. [l] Selder.. de Succelf. in Pontif. [mJ Calmet. Preface fur le Quat, Livre des Maccab. fourth 64-4- SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES. fourth book of the Maccabees [n]. It feems to have been originally written in Hebrew ; and the Arabic, or the Greek tranflator, from whofe work the Arabic was made, lived after the deftruction of the lecond temple by the Romans, as appears from fome par- ticulars. The book differs in many refpects from the relations of Jofephus. Calmet thinks, that the difcourfe on the power of reafon, before mention- ed as the work of Jofephus, was the original fourth book of Maccabees, which in many Greek manu- fcripts is placed with the other three [o]. It may be added, that in two ancient Hebrew manufcripts in the Bodleian library, as alio in one at Leipfic, there follows after Efther, as a book of the Bible, without any title or introduction, an hiftory of the Maccabees written in Chaldee, which differs widely from our apocryphal books. It appears to have been originally written in Chaldee, and to have been tranflated into Hebrew. It is probably a very ancient production, and contains many remarkable particulars [p]. [n] Athan. Synop. Syncell. Philaftr. Vid. Coteler. Not. in Can. Apoft. p. 117, 138. [o] Not. Cambefis in Jofeph. Lib. de Imper. Ration. Cotel. Not. in Can. Apoft. p. 339. [p] The Hebrew copy has been publifhed in a very corrupt flatc by Eartoloccius. Vid. Kennicott, No. 18, Pentat. Pfah Megill. 80, p. 55, 56. on Hebrew and Samaritan manufcript, P- 554- FINIS. Frintid by Bije and Law, St. Jthn's Square, CL rkaiwtl!. Date Due ■••o^ ! 1 m PRINTED IN U. S. A.